ARCHBOLD, Ohio – WoodTrac, a division of Sauder, is pleased to receive Eco-Certified Composite (ECC) Certification for the WoodTrac Ceiling Systems Product.

The ECC Standard is a voluntary industry standard developed by the Composite Panel Association (CPA) for composite wood panels and finished products made with particleboard, MDF, hardboard, and engineered wood siding and trim.

“This certification is quite different from others in that it grades your product on five different areas and not simply on where your wood comes from,” says Dan Sauder, executive vice president of engineering and new markets, “Which makes the ECC Certification all the more meaningful to the industry.”

To qualify for the certification, the product must meet at least three of the following ECC Standards:

•Carbon Footprint – The plant must demonstrate that the panel’s carbon store offsets its carbon footprint cradle-to-gate as determined in kg-CO2 equivalents of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Each plant must use the “CPA Carbon Calculator” to determine if its panels perform as a carbon sink resulting in overall net carbon storage.

•Local and Renewable Resource – At least 85 percent of wood fiber is sourced within 250 miles of the panel plant.

•Recycled/Recovered– At least 75 percent recycled or recovered wood fiber; OR use of at least 50 percent recycled or recovered wood fiber PLUS a minimum of five percent post-consumer wood fiber.

•Sustainability – At least 97 percent wood fiber furnish is converted to panels or re-utilized as a valued product. Non-valued products include wood residuals shipped to a landfill, material hauled away for a tipping fee as waste material, and boiler ash waste.

•Wood Sourcing – Conformity with FSC Controlled Wood Standard (2008); FSC Chain of Custody Standard (2008); or SFI Fiber Sourcing Requirements (2011).

To learn more about qualification for ECC Certification visit www.pbmdf.com/eco-certified-composite-ecc-program . For more information on WoodTrac Ceiling System by Sauder, visit www.woodtracbysauder.com. For up-to-date company and industry information, visit WoodTrac on Facebook and Twitter.

Source: WoodTrac by Sauder