The panel discussed opportunities and challenges in advancing material health practices in the building industry over the next 1-2 years. A key focus was the need to strengthen and align demand from building owners for healthier materials, as consistent owner requests are more likely to drive manufacturer response. The Global Buyers Club and other initiatives are working to coordinate this demand. While progress has been made with tools like Health Product Declarations (HPDs), many manufacturers still struggle with collecting and organizing data about their products’ chemical composition. The industry now has over 1,000 manufacturers, 13,000 published HPDs, and information on over 40,000 building products. However, implementation remains challenging, with about 40% of specified preferred products being lost during construction due to value engineering and substitutions. Better tools and transparency are needed to maintain specification integrity through construction. The panel emphasized that material health shouldn’t be viewed as competing with other priorities like low carbon; instead, these attributes should be considered together when selecting materials. There’s also a need to support innovation in safer materials, including through initiatives like The Innovation Exchange that connects startups and established manufacturers. Digital tools are improving to make information more accessible and help track outcomes, with the Common Materials Framework and other initiatives helping standardize information. The panel concluded that focusing on specific “sweet spots” or product categories where safer alternatives are possible could help demonstrate success. They emphasized the importance of collaboration and knowledge sharing among industry stakeholders to advance material health practices. Through these combined efforts, the industry hopes to accelerate the adoption of healthier materials in building projects while maintaining other sustainability goals.
