Sustainability Requirements for Building Materials in DGNB Certification

Learn how building materials significantly affect the sustainability evaluation of buildings – and what information is required to assess their impact

Increasing sustainability requirements in the construction industry present building material manufacturers with various challenges, such as carbon reduction, verification requirements and growing demand for transparency and recyclability.

At the same time, manufacturers must find innovative, economical and compliant solutions for their products to remain competitive. How can they balance environmental responsibility, market requirements and regulation?

This basic training will help you better understand sustainability issues in the construction industry, identify relevant requirements for building materials and classify product information in the context of the DGNB System. In addition, you will gain an overview of DGNB Certification requirements and objectives – and understand how building materials influence the sustainability evaluation of buildings.

The course is held in German.

There is no one-size-fits-all answer to selecting the 'right' building materials for a sustainable building. Every construction project is unique and requires a tailored approach. That's why it's essential to be familiar with solutions and methods that help you choose products specific to your project.

In the DGNB Certification System, building materials are evaluated for quality across various aspects. Quality levels (QS1-4) serve as the framework for assessment, with individual assessment tools forming the basis of evaluation. When manufacturers can demonstrate the quality level of their products, this simplifies information gathering for architects and planners during the design, planning and certification process.

Event details

Employees of building material manufacturers, especially in these specialist areas:
- Sales and field services
- Technical consulting or support
- Marketing and communication
Persons involved in construction

This training course provides an overview of DGNB Certification fundamentals and objectives, and the construction industry's role in achieving national and international sustainability goals. We will first focus on the topic of climate action. Through a sample calculation, you'll learn how building materials contribute to a building's carbon footprint and become familiar with key data sources such as EPDs and ÖKOBAUDAT. You'll also discover how product design can enable reuse and recycling. Next, we focus on protecting health and the environment, exploring how building materials influence indoor air quality. Finally, you will explore the topic of sustainable supply chains and learn what data is required to meet sustainability, transparency and market requirements throughout the supply chain.

Overview of contents:

Introduction to the DGNB System
Regulatory overview at European and national level
Significance of building life cycle assessment
Fundamentals of resource-efficient construction
Pollutants in building materials
Sustainability requirements along the supply chain and relevant DGNB criteria and data

You will gain an overview of the objectives and requirements of DGNB Certification.
You will understand relevant legal requirements for building materials at national and European level.
You will be able to classify building materials in the context of climate action, resource efficiency, health and supply chains.
You will gain a basic understanding of harmful substances in building materials and learn which criteria and limit values are relevant for classification in DGNB quality levels (QS1-4). You will also learn how product labels can facilitate this classification.
You will be familiar with building material requirements and data needs for selected DGNB criteria.
You will understand the importance of transparent product information for planning and building certification.

Duration

1 seminar day (2 x 90 min.)

Location

Online

Fee

€225 for DGNB members/members of a cooperating training institution¹ /people working for a local authority, a local government body or a municipal enterprise²

€290 for DGNB non-members

_{^{All fees are subject to the statutory VAT.}}
_{^{1 When booking, please enclose valid evidence of membership of a cooperating training institution.
2 These terms and conditions apply to local authorities in Germany. If you wish to make use of them, please confirm your eligibility during registration. For more information, see the landing page.
Reduced fees are subject to the DGNB fee schedule affecting all ordinary members and group members of the DGNB and their employees.}}

Groups (10 participants or more)
For group bookings of 10 people or more, please contact us by writing to academy@dgnb.de.

Further offer: Individual in-depth module (inhouse training for groups)
For interested building product manufacturers, the DGNB Academy offers an additional inhouse module that builds on this training and allows us to address your specific products, questions and challenges. We would be happy to advise you. Enquire now

Please note: As the training is held in German, please switch to German language settings to make a booking.

We will send you a certificate of attendance which makes your acquired knowledge transparent.

There are no admission requirements.

The event will take place online via Zoom. You can conveniently log in with the dial-in link via the browser (no need to download the Zoom app) or the Zoom app. You can participate via desktop PC, laptop, tablet or smartphone.

We recommend using a PC or laptop with a camera, loudspeaker and microphone (alternatively: headset with microphone) as well as a stable internet connection. If you have problems with the audio quality, you can also dial in via a telephone.

You will receive your dial-in details two to three working days in advance.