Buildings are responsible for nearly 40% of total energy consumption in the U.S. Rising energy costs and associated environmental impacts from electricity generation are creating a market for energy efficient products. In order to reach consumers, manufacturers must effectively communicate the energy savings their products will provide. Third-party certification of energy savings provides a powerful communication tool that instills consumer confidence in your energy savings claims.

GreenCircle will conduct a detailed evaluation and scientifically assess, within laboratory and active settings, that a product does, in fact, save energy as compared to a traditional or similar product. Certification will document the product's energy savings (by percentage) compared to a standard/similar product based on GreenCircle's independent evaluation. Consumers of products that earn GreenCircle's Certified Energy Savings mark can rest assured that those products will reduce energy consumption as compared to a traditional/similar product.

• Objective: Validate that a specific product can provide energy savings to a building as compared to a traditional/similar product.
• Definitions:
  • Traditional/Similar Product: A product that has been used within the marketplace that can serve as a benchmark for general energy consumption of a specific product category for this comparative assessment.
  • Energy Savings Product: A product that has gone through a sustainable product design process and can be calculated to have significant energy savings as compared to a traditional or similar product.
• Reference Documents: Federal Trade Commission 2012 Green Guides (Comparative Claims).