Doors and hardware typically make up 2% of an overall building project. What may seem like a small portion of a project is actually a huge consideration for designers. ASSA ABLOY is a global leader in door opening solutions, and they are working to realize the potential of sustainable hardware.
ASSA ABLOY is making their products a vital component of the green marketplace. The company’s Director of Sustainable Building Solutions, Amy Vigneux, dared to make her company one of the first to participate in the Living Product Challenge, the most advanced measure of sustainability for the creation of all products. The Living Product Challenge is a certification framework that touches on all aspects of a product’s lifecycle.
ASSA ABLOY began to evaluate their manufacturing strategies by joining Living Product 50 (LP50), a collaborative group of manufacturers who are working together to bring transparency, green chemistry and supply chain innovation to their companies.
The LP50 cohort encouraged Amy and her team to research the embodied energy of their products, which gave her team a new lens with which to approach product development. With the help of the LP50, Amy worked to educate internal staff and end-users about the importance of conscious product procurement.
Precisely what goes into ASSA ABLOY’s conscious products? Amy explains that her team has included ILFI’s Red List into their own internal ‘red list’ so they can continue to phase out harmful chemicals in their products and processes.
By utilizing this process and considering all phases of a product’s life, ASSA ABLOY is able to move forward with Living Product Challenge certification with their EcoFlex Electrified Mortise Lock. This lock previously used a solenoid motor, which meant it was pulling power continuously. However, the new design has a step driven motor. Acting like a hybrid car, it pulls enough power from the grid to charge the lock and then waits in low energy standby mode until a user presents an access card. It’s manufactured by sister companies Sargent in New Haven, Connecticut and Corbin Russwin in Berlin, Connecticut.
With this product, ASSA ABLOY is proving locks, which can be so often overlooked, have a rightful place in the creation of high performance, healthy buildings. For Amy and her team, having it become certified as a Living Product is so important because it will go in Living Buildings with living people. And for that reason, creating products that provide longevity for those people, their children and their grandchildren is of utmost importance.
