Option 3, Product Manufacturer Supply Chain Optimization, is worth its own point. While still in draft form, this credit addresses a manufacturers' supply chain and how well their product components and chemicals are documented. Option 1 and 2 of the credit are rewarding products that are fully vetted where as Option 3 as currently written would allow credit for partially vetted products. Cradle to Cradle Certified components and or chemicals may contribute to this documentation as the credit develops.

What You Know About a Cradle to Cradle Certified Product

With many certification programs, the concern becomes one of information overload. It is not the purview of an architect to scrutinize every ingredient of every material for consistency with sustainability goals. Yet reliable information on products and their constituent ingredients is still needed. While the analysis and optimization results of a product put through Cradle to Cradle Certified assessment are rigorous and detailed and full of complicated information unique to the particular company, when a product earned the Cradle to Cradle Certified mark, architects and specifiers know certain things about it.

To begin with, Cradle to Cradle Certified means there has been external verification of a product's recyclability and safety for human and environmental health. An expert assessment of toxicity hazards of all product ingredients has been made throughout the supply chain down to 100 ppm (0.01 percent). A continuous improvement path has been defined for optimizing product design and manufacturing processes. For those who select Cradle to Cradle Certified products, there is also the sense of joining a growing community of specifiers and consumers who demand truly sustainable products and the transparent, holistic assessment of those products.

Commercial customers influenced by LEED and other environmental rating systems together with an overall demand for sustainable products and processes, are heightening the need for transparent, credible product information. In this environment, Cradle to Cradle Certified becomes increasingly important, as a quick reference for everyone looking for quality, sustainable products for the built environment.

Additional Resources

MBDC

EPEA

ToxServices

Cradle to Cradle Product Standard documentation

Cradle to Cradle Certified product registry

USGBC's LEED v4

ENDNOTES
1	http://www.interiordesign.net/article/540162-McDonough_Iceland_Collection.php

The Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute administers the Cradle to Cradle CertifiedCM Products Program to bring about a new industrial revolution that turns the making of things into a positive force for society, economy, and the planet. www.c2ccertified.org