Protecting Green Buildings and Our Common Future

Developed by the BRE Group, the BRE Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) was the world’s first sustainability assessment method for buildings. Now used for building, infrastructure, and master planning projects in 93 countries, BREEAM provides a proven, globally accepted system of third-party assessment certification of environmental, social and economic sustainability.

IMPACT®, the specification and database tool developed by the BRE Group, allows you to access specific EPD data for Hempel coating solutions for Building life cycle assessments.

Developed by the U.S. Green Building Council, LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is the world’s most widely used green building rating system. Projects pursuing LEED certification earn points for green building strategies across several categories. Based on the number of points achieved, a project earns one of four LEED rating levels: Certified, Silver, Gold or Platinum.

Developed by the German Sustainable Building Council, the DGNB System promotes sustainable buildings in Germany and around the world. DGNB System certification of buildings, interiors and districts, emphasises environmental as well as economic and sociocultural factors.

No, LEED certification for single products is not possible. LEED is a rating system for the environmental assessment of buildings. Only buildings can be LEED certified. For a LEED certification, buildings are assessed according to different LEED categories. For each category, a certain number of points is available. In general, points are not given for single products of a single manufacturer but if full product categories or a group of different building materials meet specific requirements. Protective coatings and intumescent coatings from Hempel can contribute to points in the categories "Materials & Resources" and "Indoor Environmental Quality".

No, BREEAM certification for single products is not possible. BREEAM is a sustainability assessment method for buildings. Only buildings can be BREEAM certified. For a BREEAM certification, buildings are assessed according to different BREEAM categories. For each category, a certain number of credits is available. In general, credits are not given for single products of a single manufacturer but if full product categories or a group of different building materials meet specific requirements. Protective coatings and intumescent coatings from Hempel can contribute to credits in the categories "Materials" and "Health and wellbeing".

No, DGNB System certification for single products is not possible. The DGNB System is a Green building standard for the environmental assessment of buildings. It evaluates the building’s entire life cycle. Only buildings can be DGNB System certified. For a DGNB System certification, buildings are assessed according to different topics. For each topic a certain number of points is available. In general, points are not given for single products of a single manufacturer but if full product categories or a group of different building materials meet specific criteria. Protective coatings and intumescent coatings from Hempel can contribute to points for the criterion "ENV1.2 Local environmental impact".

Our recommended products for DGNB System projects are listed in the DGNB Navigator, an online database for architects, planners, and auditors. Several of our products were awarded product-specific DGNB Navigator labels for the highest levels of data transparency and quality.

In general, LEED points are not given for single products of a single manufacturer but if full product categories or a group of different building materials meet specific requirements. Protective coatings and intumescent coatings from Hempel can contribute to up to 3 points in the category "Indoor Environmental Quality" (EQ Credit: Low-emitting materials) and up to 1 point in the category "Materials and Resources" (MR Credit: Environmental Product Declarations). 

The category "Indoor Environmental Quality" (EQ Credit: Low-emitting materials) sets VOC content and VOC emission limits for paints and coatings that are wet-applied on site. Limits vary across regions. Hempel offers a wide range of products that fully meet both requirements in different core markets and allow projects to apply for the maximum of 3 points in this category.*

The category "Materials and Resources" (MR Credit: Environmental Product Declarations) requires that Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) for at least 20 different products from at least 5 different manufacturers can be provided. Hempel has Product-specific Type III EPDs with third-party certification for a wide range of products. Products with this EPD type are counted as 1.5 products in this category. This means for example, that a system of 3 Hempel products with EPDs would be equal to 4.5 products and the project would only require EPDs for 15.5 other building materials from 4 other manufacturers to get the 1 LEED point available for this category. 

Please contact regional or country representatives of Hempel's Decorative paint brands to learn how Hempel's Decorative paint products can additionally contribute to LEED points in the categories "Sustainable Sites" (SS Credit: Heat Island Reduction) and "Materials and Resources" (MR Credit: Material Ingredients).

*For the maximum of 3 LEED points in this category, apart from all paints/coatings, also all products from 3 other building material categories need to meet VOC content and VOC emission requirements. These categories are: Adhesives and Sealants, Flooring, Wall panels, Ceilings, Insulation, Furniture, Composite wood.

In general, BREEAM credits are not given for single products of a single manufacturer but if full product categories or a group of different building materials meet specific requirements. Protective coatings and intumescent coatings from Hempel can contribute to up to 3 credits in the category "Health and wellbeing" (Hea 02 Indoor air quality) and up to 1 point in the category "Materials" (Mat 01: Life cycle impacts)*. 

The category "Health and wellbeing" (Hea 02 Indoor air quality) sets VOC content and VOC emission limits for paints and coatings that are applied on structures for interior (=within the waterproofing membrane), regardless if they are wet-applied on site or in the workshop/factory.  Limits vary between different BREEAM standards*. Hempel offers products that meet exemplary level (=innovation) criteria and allow projects to apply for the maximum of 3 credits in this category.**

The category "Materials" (Mat 01: Life cycle impacts) requires that verified Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) for at least 5 different products can be provided. Hempel has Product-specific Type III EPDs with third-party certification for a wide range of products. According to BREEAM International (2016), only two EPDs can be counted per classification group. Paints are in the same category as plastic, polymer, resin, chemicals and bituminous. This means for example, that a system with Hempel products can contribute with 2 EPDs. For getting the 1 credit in this category, the project needs to submit 3 more EPDs from at least 2 other classification groups.

Please contact regional or country representatives of Hempel's Decorative paint brands to learn how Hempel's Decorative paint products can additionally contribute to BREEAM categories.

 *BREEAM has different technical standards that are valid for different countries. Category names on this site are stated according to BREEAM International New Construction (2016). Country-specific standards exist for the Netherlands, Norway, Spain and the United Kingdom.  ***For the maximum of 3 BREEAM credits in this category, apart from all paints/coatings, also all products from all other building material categories need to meet exemplary level (=innovation) criteria. These categories are: Wood-based products, Flooring materials, Ceiling/wall/Acoustic & thermal insulation materials, Interior adhesives and sealants.

In general, DGNB System points are not given for single products of a single manufacturer but if full product categories or a group of different building materials meet specific criteria.

"ENV1.2 Local environmental impact" is the only criterion with product-specific requirements for intumescent and protective coatings. It defines VOC content requirements for coating systems for four quality levels. It has one category for intumescent coatings and three categories for protective coatings (up to ISO 12944-C2 high, up to ISO 12944-C3 high, from ISO 12944-C4 upwards). All coatings must meet the requirements of the quality level the project is aiming for, no matter if they are applied in the workshop, on the construction site, or on steel structures for the interior or the exterior of a building. The lowest quality level (= Quality level 1) equals legal requirements, and the highest quality level (= Quality level 4) is granted to systems with the lowest possible VOC content. Hempel offers protective coatings and intumescent coatings for all four quality levels.  

Additionally, VOC emission test reports and Environmental product declarations (EPDs) are available for many Hempel products. Our VOC emission test reports prove that Hempel solutions are good choices to pass indoor air quality measurements according to "SOC1.2 Indoor Air Quality". Our EPDs provide product-specific lifecycle data for the criterion "ENV1.1 Building life cycle assessment".

Our recommended products for DGNB System projects are listed in the DGNB Navigator, an online database for architects, planners, and auditors. Several of our products were awarded product-specific DGNB Navigator labels for the highest data transparency and quality levels.

An Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) is a standardized declaration of the environmental impact a product has over its life cycle. EPDs are type III environmental claims under ISO 14025, and are based on a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) following ISO 14040/44 methodology and ISO EN 15804 product category rules for construction products. EPDs are third-party verified, and registered and certified for five years by recognized program operators. 

No, LEED and BREEAM do not define minimum requirements for their EPD categories. This means, that projects can get the 1 point or 1 credit for EPDs without any contribution from paint and coatings. However, Hempel has product-specific Type III EPDs with third-party certification for a wide range of products and can help projects to meet up to 40% of the EPD requirement with Hempel products alone.

No, LEED and BREEAM do only define VOC emission limits for paints and coatings that are applied on structures for interior (=within the waterproofing membrane). This means products that are applied on structures outside the waterproofing membrane do not need to meet VOC emission criteria. 

For LEED, all paints and coatings that are wet-applied on site on structures for interior are evaluated. At least 75% (by volume or surface area) need to meet VOC emission requirements.

BREEAM does not differentiate between on-site and off-site application. 100% of all paints and coatings that are applied on structures for interior have to meet VOC emission criteria.

BREEAM International New Construction 2016 and several recently published country-specific BREEAM standards* set strict VOC content limits for their "Health and wellbeing" (Hea 02 Indoor air quality) categories. VOC content limits of 80 g/l for two-component and 100 g/l for one-component protective coatings can be best met by waterborne primers and topcoats, especially when aiming for thin film thicknesses that are typically used within the waterproofing membrane.

However, as BREEAM does only set VOC content limits for structures inside the waterproofing membrane, other low VOC coatings can be considered for structure outside the waterproofing membrane. 

*E.g. BREEAM UK New Construction 2018, BREEAM-NL Nieuwbouw 2020

Yes, Hempel's wide range of low-VOC products can also contribute to other Green Building schemes in Europe, the Middle East, South East Asia, Australia and China. Examples are Estidama Pearl Rating System, Green Seal, Green Star and Singapore Green Label. Please contact our representatives in your country to find out what products are the best solution for your specific project.