About Building Clean

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installation of wood plank flooring

About Building Clean

Improving Efficiency, Health, and Equity in Housing and Creating Good Jobs

When buildings are designed, built, and maintained to protect the health of people and the environment—and if the manufacturing of building products and materials create good-paying union jobs in the U.S.—then the wellbeing of people and communities will improve, especially for people of color.

Building Clean works to increase the use of building products that are more efficient, less toxic, and manufactured in the U.S. We aim to improve the physical, environmental and economic health of communities and promote a more equitable future for all. 

Increase Efficiency: Investments in energy and water efficiency in buildings helps protect our environment and lower utility bills for consumers.

Create Good Jobs: Purchasing building products made by U.S. manufacturers—particularly union manufacturers—supports the creation of high-quality jobs. Dedicating tax dollars towards the purchase of U.S. made building products for building efficiency improvements helps maximize the economic benefits of these investments in communities. 

Improve Health and Equity: Invest in the health of residents, workers, and communities through the use of building products that are free from hazardous chemicals. That means building a more equitable society; improving the physical and economic health of marginalized communities by prioritizing the selection of building products that won’t create or exacerbate health conditions for residents; and helping support local economies through the creation of good-paying union jobs. 

 

What’s on BuildingClean.org?

Manufacturers of energy and water efficient building products.

Our database contains thousands of manufacturing sites across the U.S. producing a wide range of building products in 10 market sectors: appliances & water heaters, building enclosure, heating, ventilation & A/C, insulation, joint sealants, lighting, plumbing, roofing, windows, doors & skylights, and water filtration.

Manufacturers are searchable by product sector, type, and material, as well as by state and zip code in order to help locate companies that manufacture closest to a project site. The advanced search helps identify which locations have union workers, are foreign or domestically owned, as well as their MWDBE (Minority Women Disadvantaged Business Enterprise) status. Unlike the sector searches, foreign based exporters and U.S. based importers of products are included in these search results. This information is captured in Building Clean data to help users understand the manufacturing origin of brands they currently use.  

What you should know about the information we collect on manufacturing facilities: 

We do our best to ensure that the data we release is as complete, accurate, and useful as possible. We cannot always determine which specific building products are made at a given manufacturing facility, and manufacturers may shift production of products or product lines between different facility locations over time. Data provided on products made by U.S. manufacturers at their facilities should be verified by the manufacturer to meet any domestic or local content standards. Look to product specification information sheets, product packaging, company websites and customer service for further guidance on what is domestically made and at what location. 

Union status is difficult to determine. Facilities with the “Union workers” label have at least two F-7 Notice of Bargaining forms (at least one from 2015 or later) filed with the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, which indicates that workers at the facility are likely to be represented by a union.

Building products with energy, water, and health certifications and ingredient disclosures—so you know what’s in them and any potential health hazards.

Through our partnership with Ecomedes, Building Clean provides access to information on thousands of efficient and healthier building products, many of which are being made by manufacturers in the Building Clean database. Search options include Energy Star and WaterSense qualified products, multiple products with ecolabels and certifications, and products that qualify for LEED, Living BuildingChallenge (LBC)—which both incentivize or require local sourcing in their criteria—WELL, and Green Globes building certifications.

Information and resources on hazardous chemicals in building products and how product choices can impact health and economic outcomes in communities of color.

Building Clean helps people make informed decisions about hazardous chemicals, the potential health consequences residents and workers face from exposure to these chemicals, and how to avoid exposure through informed installation and substituting hazardous products for healthier ones.  

We also help foster a better understanding of the health inequities that exist among disadvantaged populations as a result of living in old, inefficient housing; why good union manufacturing jobs are a path to the middle-class; and how we can improve health and economic outcomes for communities as we invest in efficiency in affordable housing.