Eco-Labelling – GORD Labs

From everyday consumer goods, manufacturers and suppliers across all industries are increasingly working to earn eco-labels for their products, and rightly so. Never before have end users been more environmentally aware than they are today. Getting a green label, hence, is the logical next step for manufacturers and suppliers striving to add value to their range of products. With green regulations rapidly becoming a norm in most countries, manufacturers continuing with conventional practices must do so at their own peril.

Having a green product certification provides an objective and immediate evidence that its design and manufacturing has followed sustainability principles. Getting appliances and consumer goods tested and verified at GORD LABS not only provides a stamp of approval for energy efficiency and safety, but also makes them eligible to be a part of projects and markets stringent on the use of eco-friendly products.

Types Of Ecolabels

There are three main types of widely adopted eco-labelling programs, guided by internationally recognized standards and each serves a different purpose and addresses different attributes:

Single-Attribute Labels

A single-attribute label identifies an individual environmental attribute associated with the product. An example of a single attribute label is the representation of recycled content or the energy efficiency performance of the product.

Multi-Attribute Labels

In contrast to single attribute labels, multi-attribute labels/standards represent collective characteristics of the product with an aim to set criteria for the range of environmental impacts that the product category should tend to minimize or avoid. This is typically done by focusing on life cycle environmental impacts of the product categories e.g. energy saving, carbon footprint reduction, recycle or reuse of material and impact on the ecosystem and public health. These labels are good indicators of the “greenness” of the product category and are awarded when all the criteria of the standard are met by the product category.

Environmental Product Declarations

Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) labels are awarded to a product for declaring its environmental impacts over its life cycle. The award of the label requires a thorough life cycle assessment study, which helps the comparison of the product with other products in the same category in terms of their life cycle environmental footprints. EPD label helps users to compare the relevant data among products and make an informed decision.