Building Professionals Lack Confidence in Green Product Claims

While many organizations are specifying more energy efficient equipment, a new survey shows that purchasing professionals may not trust the performance advertised by manufacturers. The survey performed by Carbon Trust, a sustainability consulting company, found that just 5% of building professionals in a position to make procurement decisions for organizations described themselves as “very confident” in product energy efficiency claims, while nearly a quarter (24%) said they were not confident at all in the voracity of advertised performance.

The survey polled 135 UK-based building professionals, with one in three respondents citing that a lack of credible information about energy-consuming equipment performance as a barrier to improving organizational energy efficiency. Making the business case for improvements, other organizational priorities, financing struggles, and risk of operational disruption were also noted as roadblocks that can prevent improvement from being made.

Product certifications are a great way to verify advertised energy savings! Check out these guides to the Cradle to Cradle, FloorScore, and Green Squared programs to learn more!