Next Big Thing: Sustainable wallboard

USG Corporation is rolling out what it calls the "next big thing in wallboard:" Sheetrock Brand EcoSmart Panels.

The wallboard answers the call for sustainable and lightweight building products,  leveraging USG’s UltraLight technology (only now with a significantly reduced carbon footprint and lower water usage).

“We always strive to solve our industry’s toughest challenges, and as demand for sustainable products continues to grow, architects and builders are looking to manufacturers to take the next step in lowering our environmental footprint,” said Jennifer Scanlon, president and CEO of USG Corporation. “That’s why it was important to develop a way to use less water and energy in the manufacturing process. This provides our industry with an opportunity to address environmental challenges, and gives architects a product that is specifiable for sustainability.”

USG committed to developing a wallboard with a lower carbon footprint when it adopted the Architecture 2030 Challenge for Products in July 2016. USG developed new gypsum core chemistries and a manufacturing process to reduce 20% of carbon dioxide emissions and decrease water usage by 25%. These panels also reduce transportation fossil fuel consumption because they weigh less.

“There has been a significant movement in the architecture community to reduce the carbon footprint of the building sector,” said Edward Mazria, CEO and founder of the Architecture 2030 Challenge. “Yet, to fully achieve our goal for the building sector to become carbon-neutral by 2050, manufacturers like USG must quickly rise to the occasion and develop sustainable, low-carbon and zero-carbon building materials.”