Cement company Lafarge South Africa is now offering environment-friendly Level C Global GreenTag-certified products to domestic consumers.

Three of the company’s value-added global brands, Agilia, Artevia and Hydromedia, were all successfully certified by the internationally recognised Global GreenTag ecolabel at the end of June.

Global GreenTag GreenRate certification sees ecofriendly products awarded Green Star credits.

The achievement places Lafarge South Africa at the forefront of green building in South Africa, contributing to sustainable development through energy conservation and the proterction of natural resources.

The Global GreenTag certification standards are recognised in over 70 other countries, including Australia, New Zealand, certain African countries, including South Africa, and a selection of countries in South-East Asia, including Malaysia.

The global brands were scored against the six main sustainability assessment criteria, including greenhouse-gas emissions, biodiversity, health and ecotoxicity, life-cycle analysis, synergy (product efficiency) and social responsibility and labour conditions, as well as another 20-plus life cycle and social criteria.

“The effectiveness of our company’s green solutions is not only reflected in our rapidly growing record of involvement in building projects with highly ranked Green Star ratings registered by the Green Building Council of South Africa, but is now also includerd in our newly Global GreenTag certified global brands,” says Lafarge South Africa Readymix GM Alta Theron.

According to Lafarge, designers specifying the global brands as finished surfaces, walls and floors will be able to do so easily and confidently as research, analysis and reviewing of the product’s standards have already been done.

“We are able to provide architects and engineers with a wide range of well-integrated, efficient building systems that contribute not only to energy conservation and lowering the carbon footprint of their designs, but also to credit towards their Green Star interior rating,” adds Theron.

Green Star buildings have reduced operating costs and achieved 5% higher rental income, with the overall asset value increasing by 12%.