SAINT-GEORGES, QUEBEC—Victor Group announced today that the company has completed a comprehensive third party certification project based on the new Facts sustainability certification program for commercial fabrics. A new Facts certification mark was developed to recognize contract textiles that meet the rigorous requirements of the multi-attribute standard NSF/ANSI 336. This new mark is owned by ACT, the Association for Contract Textiles, and applies to contract fabrics used in the office, hospitality, healthcare, and institutional market segments. Aligned well with other industry standards such as level by BIFMA, this new certification program will help specifiers to select textiles that meet...

YORKVILLE, N.Y.—Hickory Treasures from Meyda Custom Lighting features new sculpted pendants and fixtures. Prismatic crystal baguettes illuminate with state of the art LED technology for ambient lighting, energy savings and minimal maintenance. The Hickory Treasures pendant (145991) is the 40-inch wide LED pendant, however 25- and 32-inch pendants are also available.  An eight-inch wide LED Wall Sconce (147096) is also new. Custom styles and colors are available.Go to Meyda Custom Lighting.

SEATTLE—Electric Mirror, a global leader in the lighted mirrors and mirror TV industry, introduces Keen, a dimmable lighted mirror that offers substantial energy savings by automatically reducing power to the mirror’s lights after one hour.The newly released Keen uses intelligent sensor technology to save up to 60 percent on lighted mirror energy costs, saving hoteliers thousands annually. “We created a dimming feature that addresses the challenge of hotel guests leaving their bathroom lights on when leaving their rooms and at night while they sleep,” said Electric Mirror president and CEO, Jim Mischel.According to Mischel, Keen’s one-hour automated dimming feature...

ATLANTA—When the first edition of the “ASHRAE GreenGuide” was first published 10 years ago, guidance on how to practice green building design was not so readily available. “Since 2004, the industry has witnessed the continued evolution of green building programs—from strictly voluntary to being both more in the industry mainstream as well as being mandatory in jurisdictions that adopted these for their building codes,” said Tom Lawrence,  a member of ASHRAE’s technical committee (TC 2.8).The newly published fourth edition of the “ASHRAE GreenGuide” contains updated guidance that reflects how green building practices as well as the industry have changed,...

LONG ISLAND CITY, N.Y.—The Berkeley Lab (LBNL) has produced a monitored evaluation study on The New York Times Building. The study shows that the innovations that lowered energy use by 24 percent are attainable, as MechoSystems has been promoting for several years.The post-occupancy study reflects MechoSystems’ claims about its WindowManagement System: the SolarTrac can contribute to both a building’s energy efficiency, and overall occupant comfort. The New York Times Building’s annual energy savings (compared to an ASHRAE 90.1-2001 baseline, reported by the LBNL) highlight the former feature’s success: •    43 percent lighting energy saved;•    23 percent cooling energy saved; and•  ...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—A partnership announced recently uses forensic wood science to test the accuracy of environmental claims being made about forest products from around the world. The landmark agreement between the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and the USDA Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory (FPL) establishes a cooperative research program in which forensic wood science is employed to investigate supply chain integrity, verify product claims, and identify opportunities to use the best available and emerging forensic wood science to verify the accuracy of claims found on FSC-certified products.“This is a cutting-edge effort to further ensure FSC claims are accurate,” said Kim...

ANN ARBOR, MICH.—The Natural Stone Council (NSC), an organization that promotes the use of natural stone in commercial, residential, government, institutional and educational applications, and NSF International, an independent global organization that writes public health and environmental standards for the food, water, commercial and consumer goods industries, have developed the first sustainability assessment standard for stone—NSC 373 Sustainability Assessment for Natural Dimension Stone. The standard defines criteria for the sustainable development aspects of dimensional stone production while harmonizing environmental requirements for stone quarrying and production.NSC utilized NSF International’s technical expertise as an American National Standards Institute (ANSI)-accredited standards developer...

ALPHARETTA, GA.—The Refinishing Touch has released a three-year snapshot of furniture asset management and refinishing trends from 2011 to 2013 as it prepares for growth in 2014.“Our proximity to brands and institutions through many completed refinishing, upholstery and remanufacturing projects and a broad client base gives us the opportunity to analyze furniture asset management trends and to ensure we maintain a strong vision as we head into 2014 and our 37th year in business,” said Mario Insenga, founder and president of The Refinishing Touch.Key trends from January 2011 to 2013 that emerged from data analyzed by The Refinishing Touch,...

PORTSMOUTH, N.H.—With its “minimalist footprint philosophy,” Portsmouth, N.H.-based Colwen Hotel Management, along with its sister hotel development company, XSS LLC, has established itself as one of the lodging industry’s leading supporters of LEED certification. In fact, according to John Stebbins, project manager for XSS LLC, the development process for any hotel XSS invests in begins with a commitment to LEED.“We evaluate LEED each time on an economic basis,” Stebbins says. “It has made sense so far.”Four Colwen-managed hotels are currently LEED certified: the Courtyard Keene Downtown Marriott, Keene, N.H. (Certified); Residence Inn Portsmouth Downtown, Portsmouth, N.H. (Silver); TownePlace Suites...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The movement for healthier, high-performing buildings has reached a new milestone, as the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) recently issued the 20,000th LEED certification for a commercial project. USGBC’s Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI) certified the offices and staff services space in the Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc. (GMCR) plant in Knoxville, Tenn., under LEED for Commercial Interiors (LEED-CI).“The 20,000th LEED certification belongs to an organization that shares our social and environmental values, and we applaud GMCR on its accomplishment,” said Rick Fedrizzi, president, CEO and founding chair, USGBC. “This is an important milestone in our mission to...