UL announces an agreement to include EPDItaly products in the SPOT™ Online Database

UL’s Environment division declares that EPDItaly’s Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) will be featured on SPOT™, the world’s largest online database of credible information regarding product sustainability. SPOT offers over 55,000 product families with credible certification for the community of designers, professional purchasers and all those looking for and selecting sustainable products. Environmental Product Declarations (EPD) are becoming increasingly important for the construction industry and are particularly requested by architects and designers in the specification stages for sustainable products compatible with the major rating systems such as LEED, BREEAM, WELL and others. “Following the Mutual Recognition Agreement for EPDs that has already been announced, today, we are pleased to announce that UL and EPDItaly have reached a new milestone by including EPDItaly’s Product Environmental Declarations in SPOT, our global database of sustainable products,” declared Giuseppe Barisan, General Manager of the UL Environment division in Europe. “By including these products in SPOT, users from all over the world will have the opportunity to choose from a wider offer that also includes excellent Italian building and construction materials. This agreement also confirms UL’s willingness to support local manufacturers and users in their commitment to sustainability, in line with the strategy that has led to the opening, in Italy, of the innovative UL laboratory for air quality in indoor environments. Recently, USGBC (the U.S. Green Building Council) recognised UL’s SPOT database as a valuable tool that professionals, involved in the process of product identification, selection and specification for projects in the certification stage, can use to find products that enable them to obtain credits within the LEED v4 system. Products certified by EPDItaly in SPOT can be searched for sustainable credits and are accompanied by documentation that can be used for the presentation of LEED projects. In addition, sustainability data for the products present on SPOT can easily be imported into the most important BIM software, such as AutoDesk®, Revit®, autoCAD and SketchUp, thanks to the SPOT plug-in that can be downloaded free of charge. The collaboration between EPDItaly, the Italian EPD Program Operator, and UL will allow Italian contractors in the building sector to introduce their products with EPDItaly certification to the American market. Thanks to their presence in SPOT, one of the most authoritative American databases offering information and disclosure regarding the sustainable economy, the Italian excellence of ecological products has a unique opportunity to promote the “Made in Italy” concept at international level. The SPOT database is curated by UL, a leading safety science organisation with a history dating back over 120 years and a globally recognised developer of sustainability standards. In addition to the SPOT plug-ins for various forms of BIM software, UL continues to develop the platform with the aim of expanding, facilitating and improving the search and selection of products with the lowest environmental impact and increasing attention to the wellbeing of users. To find out more about SPOT, visit ul.com/spot.