9Wood is committed to holistic building design and construction
processes. We are an FSC certified Chain-of-Custody manufacturer.
The following brief summary explains how suspended wood ceilings
can fit into a green building project.
1.0 LEED™
We find that most environmentally friendly suspended wood ceilings
begin with developing a LEED™ specification (see sample 2.0
Guide Spec below). LEED™ (Leadership
on Energy and Environmental Design) provides a definitive standard
for what constitutes a "green building". Created by the U.S. Green Building Council,
the LEED Green Building Rating System™ evaluates a building's
environmental performance from a "whole building" perspective
over its entire life cycle. A choice of 69 credits is available
to the design team. They serve as voluntary, market-driven building
criteria, each representing effective practices and emerging concepts
in energy and environmental design.
In the words of the US Green Building Council:
"LEED was created
to:
- define 'green building' by establishing a common standard
of measurement
- promote integrated, whole-building design practices
- recognize environmental leadership in the building industry
- stimulate green competition
- raise consumer awareness of green building benefits
- transform the building market"
Four levels of LEED™ certification are available: Platinum
(52-69 credits). Gold, (39-51 credits), Silver (33-38 credits), and
Certified (26-32 credits). To qualify under one of these four designations,
buildings must satisfy all of the LEED prerequisites, such as Asbestos,
Smoking Ban, etc. then go on to earn a certain number of credits.
The 69 credits are grouped into 6 areas:
- Sustainable Sites (SS)
- Water Efficiency (WE)
- Energy & Atmosphere (EA)
- Materials & Resources (MR)
- Indoor Environmental Quality (EQ)
- Innovation & Design Processes (ID)
Opportunities for suspended wood ceilings to earn credits
are as follows:
- MR Credit 3.1/3.2: Materials Reuse: 5% / 10%
(Opportunity for 1-2 pts.)
- MR Credit 4.1/4.2: Recycled Content: 10% / 20% (post-consumer + 1/2 pre-consumer)
(Opportunity for 1-2 pts.)
- MR Credit 5.1/5.2: Regional Materials: 10% / 20% Extracted, Processed and Manufactured Regionally
(Opportunity for 1-2 pts.)
- MR Credit 6: Rapidly Renewable Materials
(Opportunity for 1 pt.)
- MR Credit 7: Certified Wood
(Opportunity for 1 pt.)
- EQ Credit 4.4: Low-Emitting Materials: Composite Wood and Agrifiber Products
(Opportunity for 1 pt.)
FSC lumber is a high profile, popular way to earn a LEED™ point.
The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is an independent, not for
profit, nongovernmental organization based in Bonn, Germany. FSC
provides standard setting, trademark assurance and accreditation
services for companies and organizations interested in responsible
forestry across the globe.
Emerging from dialogue at the 1992 Rio Earth Summit, the Forest
Stewardship Council was founded in 1993. FSC brought together three
seemingly antagonistic groups: environmentalists, industrialists
and social activists. Its mission and governance reflects the balance
between these original constituents in that FSC seeks to promote
environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial and economically
viable management of the world's forests. Each is given equal weight.
FSC forest management standards are based on 10 Principles and Criteria
of responsible forest management. The operative phrase is "well-managed
forests," which include principles addressing sustainable harvesting
and bio-diversity, among others.
In the words of the Forest Stewardship Council:
"Since 1993
FSC has distinguished itself through its:
- Independence and credibility
- Recognition as the global standard
- Participation by all stakeholders
- Extensive Chain of Custody participants
- Relationships with major retailers/wholesalers
- Third party certification"
9Wood, Inc is a Chain of Custody Manufacturer. This means we have
been inspected, an operational plan for processing FSC wood products
has been put in place and approved, and that we have demonstrated
a commitment and understanding of FSC principles. For our customers
it means we form part of a pedigree chain of suppliers, starting
at the actual certified forest plot, and continuing through the
supply chain to the end user. A paper trail insuring the use of
guaranteed uncontaminated FSC wood accompanies each link in the
chain.
See our certificate
2.0 SPECIFYING SUSPENDED WOOD CEILINGS WITH LEED™ CREDITS
Below is an example of a suspended wood ceiling specification. Specifically, a subsection for FSC LEED credit generating projects. Elements
can be modified to reference other types of credits, such as use
of MR-4: Recycled materials, MR-5 Regional Supplier, EQ 4 Low VOC
finishes, etc. (This sub-section is placed in Section I-General):
BEGIN SUB-SECTION
1.X ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ASSURANCE
A. FSC Wood Ceiling Panels: Wood Ceiling Panels shall originate
from forests that are certified well-managed by an agency accredited
by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC-202.342.0413).
1. FSC-accredited certifying agencies include the following:
a. Scientific Certification Systems (SCS), Forest Conservation
Program, 510.832.1415.
b. Smart Wood Program administered by the Rainforest Alliance,
802.434.5491.
c. For a complete list of internationally accredited agencies,
visit www.fsc.org.
2. “Well-managed” shall mean forests that are being
cared for using management and logging plans that ensure sustainable
harvesting where timber growth equals or exceeds harvesting rates
in both quantity and quality over the long term. Other criteria
include protecting rivers and streams from degradation, minimizing
damage to the forest when harvesting, promoting biodiversity,
operating in concert with the lawful interest of local communities,
and maximizing both the yield and value of the forest products.
B. Proof of Pedigree: FSC-certified status of all wood products
shall be documented at beginning and end of project. Products not
complying with this requirement shall be rejected. Acceptable documentation
includes:
1. At Submittal Stage:
a. Chain-of-Custody Certificates: A copy of supplier’s
proof of current Chain of Custody certification status (basis
of this specification: 9Wood, Inc. # SCS-COC-667).
2. At Project Completion:
a. Certificates: Chain-of-Custody Certification and any one
time Chain-of-Custody agreements utilized to produce this project.
b. Quantity Formulas: Worksheet calculating the board footage
and/or square footage of raw wood materials required for project.
Worksheet shall clearly call out the percent FSC wood materials
in final products (Note: projects with less than 70% FSC wood
products shall not receive FSC certification or LEED credits).
c. Invoices: Copies of Supplier’s Invoices verifying that
raw FSC wood products purchased for project match the required
quantities.
d. Inventory Control Records: Or copies of invoices and internal
Work Orders verifying the raw FSC wood products were taken out
of inventory.
C. Compliance: Project close-out not including Quantity
Worksheet, Invoices, and Chain of Custody certificates shall not
be acceptable or qualify for LEEDs credits.
D. Quarantine Procedures: Proper quarantine procedures per
the authorized Chain of Custody Plan shall be followed at all times
and that auditing procedures as mandated by the certifier shall
be maintained.
END OF SUB-SECTION
3.0 CURRENT ISSUES IN SPECIFYING LEED™ CREDITED SUSPENDED
WOOD CEILINGS
A study conducted by the GSA revealed that, not surprisingly, there
are wide variations in the cost impact of pursuing a LEED construction
project.
3.1.1. Low Cost/High Cost: There are many “no cost”
and “low cost” LEED credits and others that are expensive—yet
both earn 1 credit (e.g., low-VOC finishes, local manufactured materials
on the low end versus renewable energy systems on the high end).
3.1.2. Design Strategies: Different design strategies can
often be used to earn the same individual LEED credits.
3.1.3. Cost Impacts: FSC and formaldehyde-free wood products
typically add a premium of between .05%-2.5% to the final installed
price.
One of the major causes of price swings in FSC wood products is
the species selection. Some FSC species are currently almost at
par with non-FSC lumber. Examples would be Hemlock, Red Oak, or Poplar.
For other species, to obtain an FSC variety requires a significant premium
(up to 25%). These include White Maple and Cherry.
Other species simply are not readily available, though more are
becoming so all the time, such as Clear Cedar.
One very viable means to help relieve pressure on the earth’s
rain forests is the specification and use of 2nd Tier tropical species.
These are species that are beautiful, usually rich colored, that
are not household names. (e.g., Billy Webb, Mechiche, Louro Gamella,
etc. in contrast to the well known Mahoganies, Teaks, or Ebonies).
This lumber is available, usually at half the price of their more
well-known cousins.
The rules of FSC certification require that a wood product contain
at least 70% of FSC wood fiber. FSC veneers are readily available
to us. Currently FSC particleboard and Formaldehyde-free MDF cores
are available for our veneered ceiling products. Unfortunately,
there is no manufacturer producing a Class 1(A) fire rated core
using either FSC fiber or formaldehyde-free adhesives.
We are awaiting some product breakthroughs, but currently we can
offer only FSC veneers on standard Fire-Rated particleboard core. Unfortunately,
this wood ceiling will not qualify for the MR-7 or EQ-4 credits
despite the FSC veneers.
4.0 RESOURCES & LINKS
Charley Coury at 9Wood, Inc. e-mail: 
US Green Council at http://www.usgbc.org/
FSC at http://www.fscus.org/
9Wood's FSC Certification: PDF Certificate (500kb) |
