INSTITUTE FOR BUILDING SCIENCE & ENERGY EFFICIENCY
IBSEE
Products
Why product certification?
The energy-efficient improvement of buildings requires high quality products, components and materials. Architects, builders, developers, etc. cannot easily assess the real beneficial effect of different products on the resulting energy efficiency of buildings therefore they will prefer to use certified products and materials.
The Institute for Building Science and Energy Efficiency as an independent institution therefore certifies products in relation to their suitability for application in energy-efficient buildings and ensures, that products and materials receiving the “IBSEE” certificate are tested according to uniform criteria and of excellent energy-relevant quality.
Benefits of certification?
Benefits for designers & specifiers:
• provide a list of suitable products
• all parameters are specified as required
• verify that claimed parameters are correct
• ensure that quality is maintained
Benefits for manufacturers & suppliers:
• differentiate suitable products
• sales increase
• target development
• maintain brand integrity
How to certify your product?
To achieve high energy buildings like passive houses up to zero energy buildings high quality materials and products with high levels of performance are required. In many products the performance requires exceeds available for standard products used in current common building practice. Therefore it is considered beneficial to provide a system to certify suitable products and confirm that the levels of performance claimed for these products are correct. IBSEE operates under its own authority as an independent, private organization and certifies energy efficient products and materials.
Application / review process?
Applicants must complete application forms which are designed to capture as much information as possible about the product in order to develop a quotation for testing and certification. The application should be reviewed to determine, if the product is suitable for certification (e.g. within the scope of the certification) and all of the relevant data has been supplied. At this stage the costs of the certification will be agreed with the applicant. Request more information: Application for product certification
Product testing and assessment?
Products and materials must be tested to the requirements of the standards or specifications required to confirm that certification criteria are met. Testing should, where possible, be carried out by a facility which is accredited for the work by a suitable accreditation body or be assessed and found acceptable to the IBSEE certification body. Upon completion of testing, the certification body reviews the test report to ensure that all of the requirements have been met. Where product/material testing is not satisfactory additional testing or a reapplication may be necessary.
Examples of suitable products:
