mindful MATERIALS (mM) today announces its plans to launch a software solution that will integrate a consistent framework for sustainability in decision-making across the built environment. mM is collaborating with technology leader Ecomedes, Inc to power this new Portal and digitize the Common Materials Framework (CMF). mM is also facilitating a collaborative network of ecosystem partners to build out critical data points to populate the CMF. This will enable a streamlined approach to manufacturer data management into the Portal via tools such as Toxnot PBC and Health Product Declaration Collaborative’s Builder, among others. Together, these measures are designed to activate product sustainability data globally, ultimately allowing for benchmarking and reduction of the holistic embodied impacts of buildings through more mindful materials decisions.
“This Portal is not about trying to build yet another new shiny tool for the industry; it’s about amplifying and activating the sustainability work already being done by amazing companies and certifying bodies in the ecosystem,” says Annie Bevan, CEO of mindful MATERIALS. “We have an ambitious vision for the built environment — one where holistic sustainability considerations for materials are no longer an option; they are an intuitive part of every project and every decision. But we can’t scale our work to reach building professionals in their day-to-day or enable a global shift in how we make and select materials without a digitized, consistent framework for material sustainability. The digitized Common Materials Framework allows us to link together an ecosystem of tech providers to activate data for more ‘mindful’ decisions. That’s why we’re so excited to build this work with Ecomedes and others like Toxnot, the HPD Collaborative, EC3 and more — enabling a data-driven, collaborative future together.”
The Common Materials Framework, a cross-stakeholder, industry-developed effort convened by mM, represents the most comprehensive mapping of the sustainability landscape for materials to-date. The framework analyzes over 650 data factors from more than 100 of the most common building product and material certifications and disclosures. These factors are organized at multiple tiers within five buckets of sustainability (Human Health, Social Health + Equity, Ecosystem Health, Climate Health, and Circularity) and together represent the first industry-adopted-framework for product sustainability.
The digitized Framework will initially only be available within the mindful MATERIALS Portal, with an intent over time to build a data ecosystem where data can flow in from multiple inputs, be filtered through the framework, and feed into all end-use tools and platforms, to ensure consistent sustainability data is available wherever product specification or purchasing decisions are being made.
Completion of Common Materials Framework V1 was officially announced at the American Institute of Architects’ National Conference in June, and the Framework has already been adopted by the AIA and other industry partners in support of meeting public materials pledge commitments. With the release of this Framework, signatories can now turn their sustainability commitments into action — ultimately allowing all stakeholders to consistently benchmark their project-level impacts and make reductions over time.
mM will unveil details of its new Portal and the digitized Common Materials Framework at this year’s Greenbuild International Conference and Expo, Nov. 1–3 in San Francisco.
“This is a future we want to help the mindful MATERIALS community build,” says Kathleen Egan, CEO of Ecomedes, Inc. “Our impact-aware engine is designed to support multiple frameworks for building products such as BIFMA, LEED, Living Building Challenge, and Federal Green Procurement. Our goal from the very beginning, which is only amplified by this collaboration, is to make it easy for manufacturers to meet customer needs and grow their sustainability-focused business. We’re incredibly proud to help build solutions for mindful MATERIALS to bring the Common Materials Framework to life digitally. It will be usable and interactive, driving better buying decisions across all stakeholders within the built environment while enabling measurement of ESG factors within buildings.”
Ecomedes, Inc. is a vertical SaaS solution for the built environment that connects buyers with sellers of commercial building products while reducing costs and the impact of building projects. Its platforms, ecomedes and Mortarr, enable building teams to efficiently discover, research, evaluate, and track building products and projects while vetting multiple impact factors. Manufacturers gain a competitive advantage on the platform by engaging and tracking customers digitally throughout their buying journey – from inspiration through documentation.
Toxnot PBC, a SaaS platform that helps manufacturers meet ESG goals through streamlined data collection and automated compliance and sustainability reporting, will be combining efforts across the Common Materials Framework. With this new portal, manufacturers will be able to manage data into mM and Ecomedes, making it easier for companies to combine data from multiple certifications and their supply chain. Powered by a leading chemical hazard database and premium suite of data collection tools, Toxnot enables manufacturers to manage all their product data in one place, and then share that data anywhere they need to report.
"Toxnot provides a best in class solution for gathering detailed supply chain data to drive a wide variety of reporting for manufacturers. With this partnership, Toxnot users will be better able to distribute their product data without the work of doing parallel updates in numerous internal and external systems. We are really excited to improve the availability of data for architects. At the same time, this plan will reduce the amount of manual effort required on the part of manufacturers to answer customer requests and rank highly against purchase criteria. The standardization that the Common Materials Framework provides combined with the growing supplier database on the Toxnot Exchange will accelerate improvements in data availability far down the building product supply chain." says Pete Girard, CEO of Toxnot.
“To respond to the human and environmental health factors included in the CMF, material health digital data from HPD reports will be available through HPDC’s collaboration and connections into this new Portal”, added Wendy Vittori, Executive Director of the Health Product Declaration Collaborative.
Regular updates on mM’s digital transformation will be made available on mindfulmaterials.com, and social media channels.
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About Toxnot
Toxnot is a software company with a mission to improve health and sustainability across the global supply chain by streamlining the chemical transparency process. Toxnot provides an efficient system for manufacturers to import chemicals data, provide insight into their hazard profiles, report on the results and create safer products. Organizations use Toxnot to automate transparency reporting and compliance, easily collect hazard information, and reduce risks across their global supply chain. Toxnot scales from small businesses to Fortune 500 enterprises.
About mindful MATERIALs, Inc.
mindful MATERIALS Inc. (mM) is dedicated to reducing, and ultimately reversing, the embodied impacts of the built environment through our collective material choices. mM furthers its mission through a global cross-sector Collaboration Hub, convening to share learning and drive informed decisions around an industry-aligned, digitized Common Materials Framework (CMF) for health, sustainability, and resilience. To learn more, visit mindfulmaterials.com
About Ecomedes, Inc.
Ecomedes, Inc. connects buyers and sellers of commercial building products through cloud-based software that reduces costs and improves sustainability. Ecomedes, Inc.’s platforms, ecomedes and Mortarr, help institutional and commercial building teams discover, evaluate, and procure optimal building products and project teams while vetting critical impact factors, including energy, water, human health, circularity, and social factors. For manufacturers, these platforms represent a new digital channel for sales and marketing to engage customers in the digital purchase journey. Headquartered in San Francisco, Calif., you can learn more about these platforms at ecomedes.com and mortarr.com.
About Health Product Declaration Collaborative
Health Product Declaration® (HPD) Collaborative is a not-for-profit, member association with over 330 organizational members, representing the full spectrum of the building industry: architects, designers, building owners, manufacturers, consultants, information systems, researchers and others, all sharing a common purpose: to improve the transparency of information and material health in buildings and the environment. HPDC leads industry stakeholder development and update process for the Health Product Declaration Open Standard.
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