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oday our industry is experiencing the most significant housing downturn in at least a generation. |
We’re also at the threshold of a new era in American home building, one that will spin off new construction methods, new materials, and require a new attention to process – or a return of old-fashioned craftsmanship.
It’s time for lumber dealers, truss manufacturers, and the American Lumber Standards Committee (ALSC) to take the leadership in establishing an eco-standard for dimensional (framing) lumber.
Three key programs have emerged to guide the greening of residential construction:
ENERGY STAR; National Green Building Standard from the NAHB; and LEED for Homes Rating System from the USGBC. Each is standards based and includes a home rating system.In addition, literally hundreds of certification schemes have sprung-up, each purporting to measure some aspect of “green.” As an industry, we’ve been greenwashed.
Local lumberyards, truss fabricators, and building material suppliers will play a key role in sorting the substance from the hype.
No one “owns” green.
We all need to distinguish between actions that increase energy efficiency, conserve water and other natural resources, improve indoor air quality, reduce materials usage and waste -- and the various rating schemes claiming to measure and certify such actions.
As suppliers, we want to provide lumber from responsibly managed, sustainable forests. It’s time we step-up and participate in defining a rational and cost-effective process to certify the source of our lumber -- or by default we’ll have a multitude of certification schemes vying to regulate the lumber supply channel.
In fact, none of the home builder programs (LEED, NGBS, ENERGY STAR) mandate the use of third-party certified framing lumber
. LEED and NGBS programs provide optional home rating points. (LEED for Homes does mandate FSC certification of tropical hardwoods.)Nevertheless, a least five credible certification schemes are vying for a share of the U.S. lumber market. Several require dealers to pay upfront “certification” fees; mandate segregation in the sourcing, inventory, and delivery of product; and place new documentation and warranty obligations on the seller (as opposed to the producer) of lumber.
In my opinion, the chain-of-custody requirements (from forest to jobsite) are over-reaching. In specific, FSC-STD-40-004 (Version 2-0) EN covers the
FSC Standard for Chain of Custody Certification; and/or SFI Requirements for Fiber Sourcing, Chain of Custody, and Product Labels . Read the requirements. You’ll be wondering if we’re handling hazardous waste or lumber? What value do these elaborate processes add? Are new home-buyers willing to pay more for the option to choose among multiple branded certification schemes? Do they prefer non-transferable paper documentation, or a Grade Stamp on each framing member?How complicated does it need to be? I’m in complete agreement with establishing of an eco-forest management standard; rigorously tracking chain-of-custody from eco-forest to mill; and accurately labeling the product at time of production.
Once the log is milled into lumber, the forest of origin is not going to change
. Label the product.Ahh, but can we trust the label?
The entire building channel, from architects and engineers, to builders, and building inspectors currently rely on the tiny but official Grade Stamp, an inked marking, on each piece of lumber. This label refers to the official American Softwood Lumber Standard.
The American Lumber Standards Committee operates under the US Department of Commerce and is the US regulatory body responsible for the American Softwood Lumber Standard, National Grading Rules, and the accreditation of third-party certification/inspection agencies. The major framing elements of homes (walls, floors, roof) are built with softwood lumber.
Approximately 98% of softwood lumber consumed in the U.S. is certified by a third-party inspection agency accredited by the ALSC.
If the Grade Stamp is reliable to document the structural strength of a piece of lumber (public safety), why not it’s ecologic lineage?
On November 14, 2007 the Lumber Building Materials Institute (LBMI, the research and education arm of the NLBMDA), requested the American Lumber Standards Committee (ALSC) to adopt “a new eco-forest management standard, accredit agencies to certify the standard, and establish a corresponding eco-label (grade stamp)”.
Why does this matter? Both LEED for Homes (LEED/ANSI) and the National Green Building Standard (NGBS/ANSI) will become ANSI standards. Both are designed to be adopted by local code agencies, and included in the International Building Code® and the Residential Building Code®
For nearly a century ALSC has served as the standards body for dimensional (framing) lumber. It is standards that have enabled the reliable design of structural framing, and reduced costs at all points in the home-building supply channel. It works. America’s homes are the envy of the world.
It’ll be the tail wagging the dog if, by our inaction, five (or more) branded certification schemes end up controlling and fragmenting the supply of lumber from forest to jobsite.
Instead of having the “measurer” control the process, let’s define a process that can be measured.
This task is now with the ALSC. It won’t be easy. Billions of dollars flow through the lumber supply channel. Vested interests and turf battles are already apparent. Fortunately, the ALSC is a consensus body and represents a broad spectrum of industry stakeholders. The time has come for an eco-standard.
Some issues are fundamental, like what constitutes eco-forest management? While there will never be complete agreement, I believe there is already substantial agreement.
What is “the product”? At least several of the branded certification schemes identify the product as the shipping “unit” of lumber, and cutting the banding straps means breaking the packaging. Say what? A grade-stamp label applies to each piece of lumber and the banding straps are void of information. In my opinion, the product is a piece of lumber. The product should be labeled by the producer/originating mill, with accredited third-party certification.
What if the lumber is cut, in example, to fabricate a truss? Without a total paper trail how will one know the materials in the truss are as specified? I suggest the same way we know the truss is built with the specified lumber grades today, the ANSI/TPI standard, which is referenced in all building codes. The Wood Truss Council of America (WTCA) manages Quality Control Standard (QC) for ANSI/TPI – 2002 and the International Building Code (IBC) 2003 – 1704 and 2303.4
NLBMDA/LBMI asked the ALSC to take on a large task. Please communicate your support of this effort to your local builders association, your state or federated dealer association, your co-op, and directly to the ALSC (e-mail).
Valerie R. Hansen
President, Big Buck Building Centers Inc
Trustee, Lumber Building Materials Institute/NLBMDA
REFERENCE LINKS:
Green Home Building Standards
February, 2008 the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) will roll out the
National Green Building Standard (NGBS draft 2 rating detail) based on NAHB’s 2004 Green Building Guidelines. (80% of U.S. homes are built by NAHB members.)January, 2008 the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) released their new
LEED for Homes Rating System.Both the NGBS and LEED for Homes mandate compliance with the US Environmental Protection Agency’s
ENERGY STAR program for new homes.These programs represent reliable roadmaps for building new homes that are energy efficient; promote good indoor air-quality; and are built in an environmentally and materials resource efficient manner.
These branded programs represent systems and methods for measuring a green home, and join a vast array green product certification schemes. Not all green homes will be certified under one or all of these programs. Most existing homes incorporate some green attributes, and many exemplary green homes have been built without benefit of any roadmap or rating scheme.
NLBMDA/LBMI
The
National Lumber and Building Material Dealers Association represents more than 8,000 lumber and building material companies with over 400,000 employees, 20 state and regional associations, and the industry’s leading manufacturers and service providers. NLBMDA member companies are the suppliers of builders in every state across the U.S. In 2006 the NLBMDA Board of Directors approved creation of the Lumber and Building Materials Institute, a separate 501 © (3) not-for-profit organization.In the year 2000, at the turn of the millennium, the National Lumber & Building Materials Dealers Association (NLBMDA) adopted a Forest Environmental Policy, the three basic elements of which are:
NLBMDA and its members care about our forests. It is our commitment – and our challenge – to promote the practice of sustainable forestry to meet the needs of today without compromising the ability to meet the needs of future generations.
NLBMDA recognizes there are a variety of different, credible sustainable forestry management systems in place throughout North America and the World. NLBMDA intends to increase the purchase of wood products from companies and landowners who subscribe to credible sustainable forestry programs.
NLBMDA will educate its members about environmental and forestry issues… will regularly review this policy to ensure it reflects new knowledge and other opportunities that may arise for NLBMDA to exercise leadership in the evolution of environmental standards.
On November 14, 2007 the Lumber Building Materials Institute (LBMI, the research and education arm of the NLBMDA), Board of Trustees adopted a resolution requesting the American Lumber Standards Committee (ALSC) to adopt “a new eco-forest management standard, accredit agencies to certify the standard, and establish a corresponding eco-label (grade stamp)”.
ALSC
The
American Lumber Standards Committee operates under the US Department of Commerce and is the US regulatory body responsible for the American Softwood Lumber Standard, National Grading Rules, and the accreditation of third-party certification/inspection agencies. The major framing elements of homes (walls, floors, roof) are built with softwood lumber.Approximately 98% of softwood lumber consumed in the U.S. is certified by a
third-party inspection agency accredited by the ALSC.ICC
The International Code Council (ICC), a membership association dedicated to building safety and fire prevention, develops the codes used to construct residential and commercial buildings, including homes and schools. Most U.S. cities, counties and states that adopt codes choose the International Codes developed by the International Code Council. The ICC is the responsible for the International Building Code® and the Residential Building Code®.
National Green Building Standard
. In a continuing effort to advance the use of environmentally responsible technologies in residential construction, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), the International Code Council (ICC) and the NAHB Research Center have initiated a process for the development of an ANSI standard for green home building construction practices.ANSI
The American National Standards Institute (
ANSI) oversees the creation, promulgation and use of thousands of norms and guidelines that directly impact businesses in nearly every sector: from acoustical devices to construction equipment, from dairy and livestock production to energy distribution, and many more. ANSI is also actively engaged in accrediting programs that assess conformance to standards – including globally-recognized cross-sector programs such as the ISO 9000 (quality) and ISO 14000 (environmental) management systems.Both the USGBC’s LEED for Homes (
LEED/ANSI) and NAHB’s National Green Building Standard (NGBS/ANSI) are seeking to become an ANSI Standard.ANSI/TPI – 2002 3.1.1 Chapter 3 is the quality standard for the manufacturing processes of metal plate connected wood trusses, and shall be used in conjunction with a manufacturing quality assurance procedure and a truss
design. These provisions shall be included in the quality assurance program of each Truss Manufacturer.
ANSI/TPI – 2002 3.2.1 An in-plant quality control manual shall be maintained for each truss manufacturing facility, which will include the requirements for daily quality control and any audits that will be performed.
The Wood Truss Council of America (WTCA) manages
Quality Control Standard (QC) for ANSI/TPI – 2002 and the International Building Code (IBC) 2003 – 1704 and 2303.4.ANSI/ASQC E4, 1993 The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) cites as standard for Chain-of-Custody Audit. “
Chain of custody is ‘an unbroken train of acceptability that ensures the physical security of samples, data and records’ (ANSI/ASQC E4, 1993). [Note: ANSI/ASQC E4 2004 is the current standard, it is unclear why FSC continues to cite the older 1993 standard.) FSC-STD-40-004 (Version 2-0) EN covers the FSC Standard for Chain of Custody Certification.| The Lumber and Building Materials Institute (LBMI), the research and education foundation of the NLBMDA, and the LBMI Green Building Council, respectfully request the American Lumber Standards Committee (ALSC) to adopt a new eco-forest management standard, accredit agencies to certify the standard, and establish a corresponding eco-label (grade stamp). View Full Resolution HERE. |