Inpro® Partners with Supplier to Reveal Life Cycle Impacts of Products

12/10/2015

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IPC® Door + Wall Protection Systems (IPC), a division of Inpro®, in collaboration with R & B Wagner, Inc. (Wagner), a manufacturer and supplier of handrail systems and parts, has released its latest Environmental Product Declaration (EPD). The EPD document reveals the environmental impacts of one of IPC’€™s product lines, a selection of stainless steel handrails.

Inpro is the first manufacturer of door and wall protection products to produce EPDs, launched in fall 2013, providing full transparency to help designers and architects create healthier and more sustainable buildings. The new EPD for stainless steel handrails is the seventh EPD made public by Inpro in accordance with ISO 14025, but the first created in collaboration with a supplier who disclosed its products’€™ entire Life Cycle Assessment, down to addressing the site-specific environmental impacts of raw material extraction.

Environmental Product Declarations offer us a scientifically-based tool to illustrate the environmental impact of our products and process in a transparent manner, said Amanda Goetsch, Sustainability Manager at Inpro. EPDs help translate often complex information from a life cycle assessment into a more easily understood format for end-users. We understand that a significant portion of the environmental impact from our products is contained within our supply chain. That is why we are proud to have successfully partnered with Wagner to help catalyse a conversation about life cycle impact and sustainable business practices. EPDs help us strive toward a goal of ultimately becoming more sustainable while offering our customers the products they have come to trust.€

Inpro approached Wagner with the partnership opportunity by sharing their sustainability commitment and transparency initiative with the company. From there, the two companies developed a seamless collaboration and communication process.

We decided to participate in Inpro’€™s EPD process because we saw an opportunity to examine our supply chain from a different perspective, said Ben Perreault, Sustainability Specialist at Wagner. We analysed areas such as transportation, raw material extraction, and waste, looking at them not solely from a cost perspective, but also how they impacted the environment.

As an example, Perreault explains his company now knows that more than 50% of its impact on Ozone Depletion comes from its direct electricity use. Knowing that, they can now focus on ways to reduce it.

It’€™s true that you cannot manage what you don’t measure, and we want to use these measurements as a benchmark for future process improvements,€ adds Perreault. We consider this partnership the first step towards transparency of our own business practices and we want to be proactive in communicating this to our customers. We truly enjoyed working with Inpro and learned a lot about our own processes along the way.

The stainless steel handrail EPD document can be found in Inpro’s Transparency Documents library, and more information on the company’s sustainability practices may be found on the Inpro website, www.Inprocorp.com, under the Sustainability section.

About IPC® Door + Wall Protection Systems

IPC® Door + Wall Protection Systems, a division of Inpro®, manufactures products that protect building interiors from relentless damage without compromising choices.

About Inpro

Since 1979, Inpro has been making and servicing products with an obsessive commitment to protecting the appearance of buildings and the health and safety of the people who use them.

About R & B Wagner, Inc.
The Wagner Companies have been in the metal business since 1850. Wagner is a manufacturer and supplier of handrail fittings and metal products for architectural and industrial applications. The main product lines include: Architectural Components, Architectural Railings and Systems and Contract Metal Manufacturer (CMM) products. Wagner offers laser, bending, stamping and finishing capabilities as well as engineering assistance. Wagner has a large inventory of raw materials and stock items in steel, brass, bronze, aluminium, and stainless steel. For more information visit www.wagnercompanies.com or call 888-243-6914.

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