Page 30 - Parquet International January 2014

ON FIELD
Finished wood, laminate, and bamboo floor products must not exceed the following emission values
Substance
Requirement (after 3 days)
Total organic compounds within the retention range C6 - C16 (TVOC)
0.25 mg/m3 air
Total organic compounds within the retention range C16 - C22 (TSVOC)
0.03 mg/m3 air
Total VOC within LIC
0.05 mg/m3 air
STANDARDS
ering and is expressed as the average ener- gy consumed during the production process per year (excluding heating systems).
Waste management
Applicants for the Ecolabel logo must pro- vide all the necessary documentation re- garding the procedures adopted for the re- covery of production process by-products. The documentation must contain all the fol- lowing information: type and quantity of the waste recovered; the type of waste elimi- nation provided, and information on the re- utilization (inside or outside the production process) of the waste and the by-products in the production of new products.
Packaging
Only easily recyclable materials, materials obtained from renewable energy sources, and materials destined for re-utilization can be used for the packaging of floor laying el- ements. The applicant for the Ecolabel logo must provide a description of the packag- ing used for the product and a declaration that certifies the conformity to this requisite.
Suitability for use
The product must be suitable for use. The respective documentation may include da- ta obtained through the use of the appro- priate ISO, CEN (EN Standard) or equiva- lent testing methods, such as national or in- house company procedures. A declaration of suitability for use for the product must al- so be prepared and based on the informa-
tion regarding the optimum use of the product by the fi- nal user. In compliance with the new European Building Regulation (995). A product will be considered suitable for use whenever it com- plies with a standard, a Eu- ropean technical homologa- tion, or a non-harmonized technical specification rec- ognized at European level. The European Union «EC»
mark of conformity for building products provides producers with an easily recog- nizable conformity certificate that is deemed sufficient for the purpose above.
Consumer information
The product must be sold with all the user information required, recommendations for its correct and optimum use in both techni- cal and general terms, and product care in- formation. At least the following informa- tion must be provided on the packaging and/or in the documentation enclosed to the product:
a) indication that the product has been awarded the EU Ecolabel logo, with a brief but specific explanation of its mean- ing in addition to the general information provided in the label's second panel
b) recommendations for product use and maintenance. Such information must pro- vide all the instructions required for prod- uct maintenance and use in particular. Whenever necessary, reference must be provided to the characteristics of product use under difficult conditions, such as in regard to water absorption, soiling resis- tance, chemical product resistance, the preparation required for the sub-surface, cleaning instructions, the recommended types of detergents, and the cleaning in- tervals necessary, for example. This in- formation must also include indications on the product's potential lifespan in technical terms expressed either as an av- erage or as a range;
c) indications regarding the product's post- use recycling or elimination circuit (ex- planations that provide consumers with information on the product's potential el- evated performance);
d) information on the EU Ecolabel logo and the respective groups of product.
CONCLUSIONS
As we invite our readers to visit the Euro- pean website www. ecolabel.eu for more in- formation, it goes without saying that a product bearing the Ecolabel daisy acquires added value, because in addition to being a symbol that guarantees the product's sus- tainability and quality, it instills in millions of consumers in Europe and around the world the confidence and trust that has sometimes unfortunately also been scarce in the wood flooring sector.
Despite the fact that there are currently no Italian producers entitled to apply the Eco- label (owing, above all, to its recent ratifi- cation), we are more than sure that we will begin to see the first Italian products for par- quet, wood, laminate, and bamboo floors bearing the European daisy seal during the year that has just begun, also because when it comes to genuine products and protection of the environment, Italian industry ranks second to none. s