The combined force of modern day economies with the rise of globalisation, and sophisticated transport routes have transformed the contemporary marketplace. Procurement is no longer restricted to geographical boundaries or local products. Large and small players are both on similar playing fields, and the new, global marketplace is more open to advanced and emerging economies.

Supply chains can now operate globally, and distribute locally. For the construction industry in particular, this altered marketplace environment opens up a number of questions in relation to product quality and compliance to Australian standards. These issues are often called into question by industry and government bodies alike because of continued concerns and negative examples that have had significantly damaging impacts.

It has been consistently challenged whether a large number of current imported products have the capacities and properties to credibly demonstrate and satisfy the same high standard performance criteria as locally produced products when tested to our high quality assurances. The ‘Infinity’ cable recall is a stark reminder to the industry that sourcing products from overseas suppliers might be a procurement cost saving, but when these products do not meet Australian quality and performance standards, it can ultimately cost contractors a great deal more than they had initially saved.

As global procurement practices are more widely accepted throughout the construction and building industries, the preservation of the high quality of products for the Australian market place is paramount to ensuring the health, safety and economic success of all Australians. The importance of maintaining our quality building and construction industry standards must not be jeopardised by the evolving nature of the modern marketplace and importation trends.

Robust and globally recognised rating systems offer the best opportunity to guarantee quality and Australian Building Standards compliance, regardless of where the materials are sourced from. The Best Practice PVC program is one such recognised mark.

The Best Practice PVC program was developed to compliment and work closely with the Green Building Council of Australia’s Green Star sustainability ratings tool. The verifications that come with the Best Practice PVC mark confirms that PVC building products are manufactured to the highest environmental, health and social performance standards.

Best Practice PVC is an industry leading program that represents a strong approach in procuring PVC products not just under the Green Star tool but under a wide range of green procurement policies or other green rating systems. By having the Best Practice PVC licence mark, the industry can be confident that they are choosing PVC products that have low environmental impact as well as make a contribution to sustainability through their benefits such as durability, low maintenance, relatively low embodied energy, and excellent thermal performance.

Australia operates in a competitive global marketplace and in order to remain competitive, it is important to maintain our active involvement in this. The concerns about inequity of imported products versus Australian manufactured products can be appropriately addressed by effectively utilising a verification program that takes into consideration the key inputs that make up the end product, regardless of where they are sourced.

Best Practice across a global supply chain, it’s a mark of quality regardless of where materials are sourced.

Click here to get in contact with Vinyl Council of Australia.

Architecture & Design Team

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