Media Release: eTool and Global GreenTag Form Partnership

Life Cycle Assessment Software provider eTool joins forces with leading eco-label Global GreenTag - to raise the benchmark on sustainable building and certified green products for the construction market.

eTool, a global leader in life cycle design and assessment of the built form and Global GreenTag, a unique and trusted provider of high level, life cycle based product certification have recently formed a partnership to enhance the life cycle impact assessment of buildings with product specific LCA options within e-Tool.

Global GreenTag operates the only ACCC approved National Certification Mark in the green building and product sector. Together, eTool and GreenTag will provide a greater joint resource to professionals and developers in the built environment sectors.

The partnership will provide a one-stop design space for building professionals, encouraging the combined use of eTool whole of buildings life cycle design services along with data from Global GreenTag's LCARate Certified products' Environmental Product Declarations (EPD) (summary LCA reporting) and also reward suppliers with GreenTag's LCARate Certification and EPDs with project leads through eToolLCD.

Global GreenTag EPD's will be available in the eToolLCD software later in 2016, Richard Haynes, Co-Founder and Lead Software Developer of eTool says "This is exciting because it marks the first time a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) software provider has used the progressive and leading Global GreenTag LCA dataset."

The partnership will allow eToolLCD users to compare industry average products with specific products that have Global GreenTag LCARate certification. These products will form part of whole of building life cycle assessment conducted using eToolLCD.

Richard said "eTool has always been a powerful tool in assisting design teams to reduce carbon impacts at the building level. It has helped create a healthy competition amongst developers. This recent partnership will now accelerate the competition amongst material manufacturers to improve their products to ensure they are specified in the buildings of the future. A perfect feedback loop."

eToolLCD's new software release will include improvement alerts so that users are prompted to consider EPDs that match existing generic materials or building components in the eToolLCD model. This new feature will also include a supplier contact form that enables eToolLCD users to request more information or quotes from product manufacturer.

According to David Baggs, CEO and Program Director of Global GreenTag who brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the eTool and GreenTag partnership as a sustainability and product consultant with over 35 years experience in sustainability and LCA, "This is a perfect solution for industry".

"In creating a life cycle analysis based rating system for products and publishing their respective EPDs, Global GreenTag has laid the foundations that create a powerful synergy between design and GreenTag certified product selection for benchmarking and improving the sustainability of projects ...further, GreenTag provides robust, whole of sustainability metrics where none existed previously. We provide the building blocks and eTool delivers the building level outcomes. It is a partnership that will deliver big for the industry"

"The more powerful tool that results from this partnership will, together with the industry, drive higher standards for the built environment and help create better performing buildings, in turn encouraging and supporting manufacturers who develop and produce healthier and environmentally safer products" he said.