Sustainable Design: Earning LEED Credits with Veneer

Architectural Panel Products Industries is committed to helping our customers achieve LEED certification for their projects. With an extensive history of sourcing veneers from around the world, our inventory of certified and controlled veneers is among the largest in the market.

Certified Wood is material that has been harvested with forestry practices that are sustainable as defined by widely accepted standards. Certification guidelines developed and monitored by organizations like the Forest Stewardship Council ( www.us.fsc.org) have been a major factor in the acceptance of sustainable forestry practices globally.

Controlled Wood is non-certified wood that can be mixed with certified material during the manufacturing of FSC mix products. It is subject to controlled condition standards as defined by the Forest Stewardship Council. Controlled woods are considered “neutral” when used in mixed wood applications like doors and panels, allowing millworkers to mix certified and controlled material without nullifying certification. They are a great way to supplement low or fluctuating supplies certified veneer without using wood from high-risk or unacceptable sources.

As defined by the U.S. Green Building Council, rapidly Renewable building materials are products made from plants that are typically harvested within a ten-year cycle or shorter. Bamboo and cork are two species that can fall into this category.

Earning LEED Credits

Certified wood, rapidly renewable materials, and regionally sourced materials all have the potential to earn LEED credits. As worldwide demand for certified wood grows, the reality is supply often lags far behind demand – particularly in domestic species. In recognition of this, the US Green Building Council also allows LEED points when mixing certified material with controlled wood.

LEED credits may be earned in the following ways:

MR7 – Certified Wood

Earns 1 point for 50% FSC wood by cost. An additional 1 point is available if 95% of the material cost is FSC certified.

MR6 – Rapidly Renewable Materials

Earns 1 point for using rapidly renewable building materials like bamboo or cork for at least 2.5% of all material cost.

MR5 – Regionally Sourced Materials

Earns 1 point of 10% of installed materials are extracted, processed, and manufactured within 500 miles of the construction site. An additional point is available of 20% of the materials are sourced regionally.

Weaving through the complexity can be challenging and we are here to help. Contact one of our expert sales team members and we will assist in interpreting LEED criteria and helping you achieve your sustainability goals.

For further information regarding certified, controlled and Rapidly Renewable wood we recommend reviewing the Forest Stewardship Council website at www.us.fsc.org. and the U.S. Green Building Council www.usgbc.org.