VELUX: “Our score in the NMD is an incentive to do even better”
An interview with Marcel Vreeken, manager of public affairs at VELUX
About six years ago, the first VELUX product with Category 1 data entered the National Environmental Database; the modular skylight for commercial applications in commercial construction. “Mainly to learn from that process,” says Marcel Vreeken, manager of public affairs at VELUX. “This was an easy product to list, perfect to ‘practice’ with.” Meanwhile, since June 2023, VELUX's four best-selling products are also listed with category 1 data in the NMD. “We have ambitious sustainability goals. Our score in the NMD is one of the factors that encourages us to do even better.”
VELUX has set itself the goal of reducing its own CO2 emissions by 100 percent by 2030. In the value chain - supplier scores - a 50% reduction must be achieved. Ambitious goals that require insight into the current score in order to take very targeted measures to make the CO2 footprint ever smaller.
Working together for a smaller footprint
Marcel: “We know exactly where we can make gains in our CO2 footprint. We have completely dissected our skylights for this purpose. Wood, for example, is only 4% of the footprint, while glass accounts for 26%. As a result, we know that we can make much bigger strides if we make improvements on that portion of glass. Use more recycled glass, for example; increase the proportion of recycled content.”
“The same applies to steel and aluminum. With ArcelorMittal we signed a cooperation agreement to research the application of greener steel in our products. With Hydro, we did the same for aluminum. Recycled aluminum, for example, has a different composition. We need to learn what adjustments are needed to our machine settings to work well with it. We choose with these cooperation agreements to explore together in the longer term the possibilities for more efficiency.”
Manager Public Affairs bij VELUX
Marcel Vreeken
Reduced CO2 emissions through recycling
In its sustainability ambition, VELUX speaks of scope 1, 2 and 3 as focus areas for sustainability. “Scope 1 and 2 are about our own processes. That's about our logistics, for example. We are electrifying our vehicle fleet - the first electric truck is now driving in the United States - and trying to minimize empty mileage. So full trucks on the way there, and full ones on the way back.”
“Circularity is also an important aspect. To prevent used VELUX skylights from ending up in the mountain of construction and demolition waste, for example, we have started a take-back service. With the take-back service, our roof windows are collected separately and transported to one of the dismantling companies. After dismantling, new raw material streams are created, such as glass, wood, aluminum and plastics. We are constantly working to use these raw materials in the highest possible quality. With FAAY, for example, we managed to reuse the wood from this process in their interior walls.”
Trying to learn
The insights VELUX now has into the environmental impact of its products didn't come about by accident, of course. To this end, VELUX had life-cycle analyses made for EPDs, Environmental Product Declarations. To then have these translated into an EQI number so that the product can be valued in the NMD for an MPG calculation.
“We started about six years ago with one of our less complex products, the modular skylight for commercial applications in non-residential construction. There are relatively few materials in this product, so easy to start with. We wanted to know: what do we have to do for this and what does such an MKI number look like? That was already a good learning process, for example in how complicated it can be to get the right data above water, especially in an international organization.”
With category 1 data in the NMD
“When it was announced at some point that the MPG limit is going from 0.8 to 0.5, we packed on with more products. With that change, it is even more important to be in the National Environmental Database with category 1 data. Now, since the summer of 2023, we are in the NMD with our four best-selling products. Our double-glazed and triple-glazed wood tumbled windows and our low-maintenance double-glazed and triple-glazed windows. Of all these products, we grabbed the worst case scenario score for the most honest representation of the product's performance. So in most cases, the product will score better than the NMD states.”
“Together with NIBE, we are now investigating whether the market suffices with the introduced dimensions: small, medium and large. Whether the dimensions can be properly recalculated or whether we still need to add dimensions to scale. So that the score comes even closer to the actual performance of the product as buil
Taking responsibility and taking steps
Marcel advises every manufacturer to start working with category 1 data. “Especially with the MPG going from 0.8 to 0.5, the need to have category 1 data in the NMD has increased. But inclusion in the NMD is never an end in itself. Rather, it is a standard part of your sustainability plan. It makes your score transparent and gives you motivation to work on it. The same applies to us. We now have an MKI score of just over €17. If we improve our footprint on scope 1, 2 and 3, that should also lead to a reduction in that number. That encourages us even more to turn those knobs.”
“What matters is that you don't do the same thing you did yesterday, but create insights to reduce your environmental impact. With the ambitions at hand - a CO2 neutral and circular built environment by 2050 - you don't want to wait for stricter regulations. It is much smarter to take those steps yourself before you are forced to. Then you take responsibility, you get a learning curve and you can anticipate what's to come.”
Milieudatabse.nl would like to showcase projects with a low MPG. Please let us know if you are working or have worked on a project with an MPG of 0.5 or lower. You can submit your project via email address communicatie@milieudatabase.nl
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