Sloan Valve Co. of Franklin Park, Ill., has become the first plumbing company to receive Cradle-to-Cradle Design certification for its products.
    MBDC, the Charlottesville,Va., product process and design firm that evaluates companies and their products based on their “eco-effectiveness,” has certified two Sloan plumbing products for Silver-level status: the Uppercut Dual-Flush flushometer and the Royal model 111 manual flushometer.
    MBDC’s Cradle-to-Cradle Design concept recognizes products whose materials are continuously circulated in closed loops. Designing for cradle-to-cradle product lifecycles, for instance, plans for sustainability and product re-use, which reduces reliance on virgin material inputs and lessens overall material costs.
    “This certification is the result of 10 months of exhaustive review of our manufacturing processes and materials,” said Jim Allen, director of Sloan’s water efficiency division. “MBDC’s Cradle-to-Cradle certification process is the most thorough and rigorous third-party product evaluation. This certification goes beyond our products' water-saving attributes; it is a true assessment of the overall, combined impact of Sloan's manufacturing, material selection,recycled/recovered material use, and all processes related to product creation.”