The Cradle to Cradle (C2C) design concept, created by Prof. Michael Braungart is based on consistent thinking about efficient use of resources and sustainable development.
In the C2C concept, all materials are perceived as raw materials that should return to the biological or technical circulation without quantitative and qualitative losses. This means the “no waste” process. For this purpose, cradle-to-cradle products and production processes are - from the inception stage, through the use phase, until disassembly - created having reuse in mind. The decisive factor here is the lack of any quality losses. C2C products must not contain any harmful ingredients and must be produced using renewable energy. As a result, this concept provides a wide space for innovation and creativity in the field of sustainable development, and makes the developed buildings resource storage for future use.
Schüco is one of the pioneers in the construction industry when it comes to C2C-certified products. We expect that the demand for their products, and thus the demand for products with such certification, will grow systematically. There is no other system that would implement the principles of sustainable development in such a comprehensive and consistent manner at the product level.
So far, EPEA institute in Hamburg has tested (according to the standards of the American "Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute" a.k.a. C2CPII ) and has certified three Schüco systems. The institute assessed the harmlessness for humans and the environment of the used materials, the re-use processes in the technical cycle, energy and water management systems during production as well as compliance with social standards in the production plant.
Furthermore, Schüco has developed their own system design model for the C2C concept. With the help of the design software known as SchüCal, they can verify in terms of compliance with the C2C concept their window, door and exterior systems themselves. In practice, a different set of products is selected for each construction investment. Thanks to the system design model from certified products, we can create entire systems with C2C certification. In December 2016, Schüco was awarded the bronze C2C certificate for this system design model.
