Survey commissioned by PPG included 629 U.S. architects representing a cross-section of job titles, experience, firm sizes and geographic locations.
Durability is the most important characteristic associated with building products in general and “green” building products in particular, according to the findings of a blind survey of U.S. architects commissioned by PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG). The survey encompassed 629 U.S. architects representing a cross-section of job titles, experience, firm sizes and geographic locations. PPG has commissioned architect surveys at regular intervals since 2003.
The survey showed that PPG ranked fourth in unaided awareness among more than 70 building product manufacturers identified by participating architects, and that awareness of the PPG IDEASCAPES(SM) brand – the overarching, architect-facing brand for PPG glass, coatings and paint – has more than tripled from 15 percent in 2008 to 51 percent in 2014.
For green building products, architects mentioned environmental product declarations (EPDs) and independent product certifications as the most important product attributes, following product durability, representing an upward trend from the 2008 and 2012 surveys. Another key green building product attribute, lifecycle assessments (LCAs), declined slightly compared to the last two surveys.
For general building products, durability was followed in importance among surveyed architects by product warranties, product features and the responsiveness of product manufacturer representatives.
PPG is by far the most recognized brand for architectural glass, outpacing its nearest competitor by 23 percent. The brand was most preferred because of architects’ previous use of and experience with PPG architectural glass products, followed by their quality and consistency.
By a significant margin, PPG is the most recommended architectural glass brand among survey respondents, leading its nearest competitor by 32 percent. Architects most often recommend PPG glass based on previous use of and experience with the products.
PPG is the predominant green leader among architectural glass manufacturers, with 44 percent of respondents citing it as the industry’s sustainability leader, more than three times the nearest competitor.
Consistent with past surveys, about 30 percent of responding firms reported doing work outside the U.S. Twenty-nine percent cited work in China and Canada, while 16 percent claimed work in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. Twelve percent of surveyed firms have done project work in Mexico, and 10 percent each completed work in the United Kingdom and South Korea.
The online survey of 629 respondents produced a ±3.9 percent margin of error at the 95 percent confidence interval.