A TOOL TO CHOOSE ENVIRONMENTALLY-FRIENDLY FINISHING PRODUCTS

ABSTRACT This paper reports a part of a research, commissioned by the Lombardy Region with regard to the preparation of a guide for the public housing development, where our contribution is focused on developing a decision-making tool, that support in the choice of building products. Although the proposed method is valid in order to make a responsible choice of any product involved in building construction, nevertheless here we intend to focus on finishing products, due to their high responsibility to create conditions of safety and health of indoor environments. The tool offers various decision-making steps that highlight and prioritize the critical moments during the choice of building materials and, through a series of cards requirements/criteria, helps the designer in the selection of materials with more environmentally-friendly features.