Naturally EGGER
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Naturally EGGER Sustainable construction and healthy living with EGGER wood-based materials www.egger.com/environment “Wood is far too valuable to just throw it away!” Fritz Egger Senior (1922 – 1982) CONTENTS 04 Our Milestones for a Healthy Environment 06 Sustainability is a Core Value 08 Climate Change and Resource Scarcity 10 Healthy Living Spaces 12 Establishing Transparency JUST ASK! WE ANSWER. 16 Storing CO₂ 18 Conserving Resources 20 Recycling 22 Safe Materials 24 Formaldehyde under Control 26 Compatible Surfaces 28 Disclosing Performance 30 Life Cycle Assessment Overview 32 Adding Value with Certifi cates OVERVIEW OF FACTS 34 EGGER Glossary 42 Comparison of Certifi cation Systems 47 Imprint 3 Our Milestones for a To conserve resources, Healthy Environment EGGER invests in lightweight boards with a honeycomb core made of recycled paper. The world’s first industrial plant commences opera- tion in St. Johann (AT). At the plant in Brilon (DE), EGGER first used EGGER is the first EGGER implements recycled wood for the European manufacturer a new exhaust air production of chipboard. to sign a contract on EGGER produces its purification process Virtually all of the EGGER behalf of the entire first chipboard. It blazes with the world’s first plants today make this group for the external the trail for technology wet electrostatic valuable contribution monitoring of its plants that makes “More from precipitator in the to the conservation of and products by the Wood”. industry. resources. Fraunhofer Institute WKI. 1961 1992 1995 2006 1991 1993 2002 EGGER integrates the EGGER St. Johann (AT) EGGER establishes first biomass power heats the municipal Timberpak in Leeds plant at the site in Brilon swimming pool, (UK): a waste wood (DE) to replace fossil by recovering the recycling centre. fuels. Shortly thereafter, heat from its exhaust The recycled wood is the plants in St. Johann air generated from used for chipboard (AT), Hexham (UK), Rion chip drying. production at EGGER des Landes (FR), Ram- Hexham. The founding bervillers (FR), Wismar of Timberpak Washing- (DE) and Unterradlberg ton (UK) and Bellshill (AT) are also equipped (UK) follows in 2011. with biomass heating and/or power plants. Nomination of the The Brilon, Wismar and Energy and Environmen- Bevern plants (all DE) tal Project in St. Johann The Energy and have ISO 50001 energy (AT) for the European Environmental Project management systems. Environmental Innova- in St. Johann (AT) is tion Prize (EEP). completed: Waste heat Establishment of a from the dryer supplies central department for EGGER is the fi rst wood- approx. 1 400 households all product-related based material man- with heat energy. environmental matters. ufacturer in Europe to prepare EPDs (environ- The plants in Hexham EGGER establishes mental product declara- (UK) and Radauti (RO) additional recycling tions) for all of its main are certifi ed according companies in Germany, products. to ISO 14001. Romania and Turkey. 2008 2010 2012 2007 2009 2011 EGGER receives the Environmental In constructing the offi ce Austrian State Prize in Management at the building in Radauti (RO), Transport Logistics for plant in Unterradlberg EGGER uses only its own the project “EGGER (AT) participates in the wood-based materials Logistics Systems Eco-Management and and receives the DGNB with Environmental Audit Scheme (EMAS). (“Deutsche Gesellschaft Benefi ts”. It gains ISO14001 für Nachhaltiges Bauen” accreditation. – German Association for Sustainable Con- EGGER obtains the PEFC struction) certifi cate in and FSC® certifi cates gold for the new building. group-wide. With the construction method certifi ed in Ra- dauti, EGGER constructs the TechCenter at the site in Unterradlberg (AT) and the Forum in Brilon (DE). St. Johann in Tirol is located at the foot of the Wilder Kaiser mountains – this is where the roots of our family company run deep. Sustainability is a Core Value Wood material production and further processing Consumer Recycling From the tree to the product – a closed cycle: EGGER emphasises the sustainable use of raw materials in its core Sawmill values. Our actions focus on the closed material cycle. In Biomass doing so, we count on fully power integrated plants with short CO₂ plant transport routes. Here wood Sustainable forestry is first used in materials, from timber production in the sawmill to the production of wood-based materials. Waste and recycled wood that are not suitable for production are EGGER takes climate change seriously. This is demonstrated by the following: used to generate energy in our own biomass power plants. 1 Most of the sawmill by-products tons of CO₂ per year remain locked up in processed into wood-based materials products compared to burning it. by EGGER at the fully integrated plant in Brilon (DE) come from the adjacent 3 Wood based material that cannot For details on the material sawmill. This protects the environment be used in products are transformed cycle, visit www.egger.com/ by eliminating approximately 5,800 into heat and environmentally friendly ecocycle truck loads (nearly 580,000 kilometres electricity by EGGER in its own biomass or 360,000 miles) per year from power plants. In doing so, we eliminate sawmills in the region. We also operate approximately 690,000 tons of CO₂ similar operations at the Wismar emissions from fossil energy sources (DE) and Radauti (RO) plants. per year. In total, approximately three- quarters of our CO₂ emissions for energy 2 The use of recycled materials in generation come from renewable, EGGER products means that 1.46 million CO₂-neutral fuels. 6 Wood is the most important raw material for EGGER. If we were to allow the destructive exploitation of forests, we would endanger our own existence over the long term. Like nature, we organise our processes in cycles that conserve resources. Wood in our homeland stands for a tradition of healthy, comfortable living spaces. As a versatile, renewable raw material, it provides us with the answers to urgent global questions of our time. EGGER Group Management Walter Schiegl Ulrich Bühler Thomas Leissing (Production/Technology) (Marketing/Sales) (Finance/Administration/Logistics) 7 Climate Change and Resource Scarcity The situation: Forests stabilise the earth’s climate because wood binds the greenhouse gas CO₂. But more and more branches of industry are discovering this renewable The consequences: Studies predict raw material as an alternative to a deficit of around 70 million cubic fossil sources. Demand for wood metres of wood in Europe for the year as a construction material, raw 2020 if management of the resource material for paper, bioplastic and continues as it is today.* Furthermore, textiles as well as a renewable the remaining forests and oceans are energy source is growing steadily. no longer able to adequately absorb the CO₂ emissions that are warming the earth. Depending on the scenario, the UN Global Climate Council expects an average temperature increase of 1.8 to 4 degrees by the year 2100.** 2010 Forestry 717 Other 308 Wood industry 458 Energy 367 2020 Forestry 709 Other 370 -69 Wood industry 529 Energy 573 2030 Forestry 712 Other 429 -231-231 For more on the topic of climate change, see the following pages: Wood industry 620 Energy 752 16 Storing CO₂ All information in millions of m3 Raw material potential Demand 18 Conserving Resources Wood that does not come directly from harvesting, e.g. industrial and scrap wood 20 Recycling Source: Udo Mantau et. al. 2010 EUwood – Real potential for changes * Udo Mantau et al. 2010 EUwood in growth and use of EU forests. Final report. Hamburg, Germany. ** Fourth Assessment Report, (AR4) 2007, IPCC 8 EGGER supports the conservation of wood as a resource. We follow the concept of cascading use: high-quality log wood is used by us to produce timber, while sawmill by-products, wood from thinnings and recycled materials are turned into wood-based materials. We only use wood thermally if it cannot be used further in materials. Furthermore, EGGER develops technologies that permit the conservation of wood. For example, our EUROLIGHT® lightweight board requires less material than a comparable solid wood board of the same thickness. The situation: Health is one of the major issues of our time. On the one hand, medical advancements are leading to higher life expectancy. On the other hand, people are exposed to The consequences: Allergies, sick other influences now due to the modern building syndrome and MCS (multiple lifestyle as well as new materials and chemical sensitivity) as well as the construction methods. An average effects of stress are increasing. Through resident of Central Europe spends reports and publications by various 90 percent of their time indoors.* institutes consumers are very much aware of issues such as formaldehyde and VOCs (volatile organic compounds). For more on the topic of healthy living spaces, see the following pages: 22 Safe Materials 24 Formaldehyde under Control 26 Compatible Surfaces Healthy Living Spaces * Federal Environment Agency of Germany, “Guideline values for indoor air”. 10 EGGER recognises the special qualities of wood: the homely and natural warmth it conveys. We are also aware of the growing importance of air quality in rooms, as buildings are becoming more insulated and draught free. This is why we intensively test the emissions of our products and also have them measured by independent institutes. Creating a pleasant atmosphere plays a major role in the further development of our materials and surfaces. This goes far beyond the chemical composition of the products. For example, our soft and quiet fl ooring with Cork+ technology and our sound-absorbing ProAcoustic elements help to create a pleasing environment, thus reducing stress. Establishing Transparency The situation: What is the difference between HQE, LEED, BREEAM and DGNB? Building certification is a complex topic. Different standards and rules can apply depending on the country or region.