Anticipated Window PCR Available for Review

Two new Window Product Category Rules (PCRs) developed by a handful of industry associations are now available for review and public comment. Monday, the Insulating Glass Manufacturers Alliance (IGMA) announced the release of a draft of the PCRs, which are being established by IGMA, the American Architectural Manufacturers Association, the Glass Association of North America and the Window and Door Manufacturers of Association.

The timeline/process of a product category rule (PCR), courtesy of AAMA.

One PCR is cradle-to-grave-based for a business-to-consumer environmental product declaration (EPD), covering only vertical windows, and the other PCR is cradle-to-gate based for business-to-business EPDs, covering all window types.

“This will be the final opportunity for the industry to comment on these PCRs, which will affect everyone in the industry required to do an LCA and provide an EPD on any of their products,” says Margaret Webb, executive director of IGMA. “These PCRs affect everyone, and if there are any concerns, they need to be raised now, as the LCA group will be meeting to review and resolve any comments received.”

Before an EPD can be created for a product, a PCR must exist. The rules are based on the science of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and spell out, for example, choices in scope, calculation steps and areas of environmental impact that are specific to the product being considered and its supply chain. According to IGMA, PCRs are a crucial step in the EPD process to ensure that harmonized and consistent calculations and procedures will be used each time an EPD is created for a product.

To download the document, click here.

IGMA is asking stakeholders to review the document and provide any comments back to executive director Margaret Webb at mwebb@igmaonline.org.