The Wercs, Ltd. announced today that GreenWERCS is now available for chemical manufacturers to quickly and easily assess product formulations. Based on more than 25 years of providing chemical compliance products and services to the chemical industry, GreenWERCS represents a first-of-its-kind software solution to drive innovation in green chemistry.

In December 2009, the EPA established a “chemicals of concern” list of four types of synthetic chemicals used widely in manufacturing and consumer products, and action plans which will require manufacturers to develop safer alternatives. This new EPA recommendation generates an immediate need for chemical manufacturers to innovate for greener chemistry. Many of these chemicals of concern are environmentally persistent as well as bioaccumulative—meaning that they can build up in human fat tissue. They also have been identified as endocrine disruptors and some, such as Bisphenol A found in many plastic reusable water bottles, have been linked by the EPA to the development of cancer.

“Being indifferent to green chemistry is no longer an option for chemical manufacturers,” said Lou DeSorbo, president and founder of The Wercs. “They will either have to innovate or risk being pushed aside by government regulations and fed up consumers. GreenWERCS will help drive the market toward greener chemistry by providing manufacturers with actionable information to improve the health and environmental impact of their products.”

Informex, supported by ICIS, one of the world’s largest information providers for the chemical and energy industries, honored GreenWERCS with a Profiles in Sustainability Award today for its commercial feasibility, scalability and significant benefits to human health and the environment.

“The purpose of the award is to promote green chemistry by showcasing companies that are leading the way and putting their money where their mouth is,” said Caitlin Devlin, organizer of the award. GreenWERCS will be profiled in a special Green issue of ICIS Chemical Business on March 1.

In conjunction with Wal-Mart, The Wercs originally introduced GreenWERCS in May 2009 for evaluating consumer products. The Wercs and Wal-Mart’s Chemical Intensive Products Sustainable Value Network Workgroup of industry, government and NGO representatives spent more than 18 months developing the scoring and weighting metrics behind GreenWERCS. Since its launch, Wal-Mart has used GreenWERCS to score more than 150,000 consumer products.

How it works

GreenWERCS analyzes the composition of individual products using ingredient data to examine its potential impact on human health and the environment. It uses a pre-identified scoring and weighting algorithm to provide information on the chemical ingredients of the products and indicate whether or not they include persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic substances (PBTs); carcinogens, mutagens or reproductive toxicants (CMRs); potential hazardous waste; and probable endocrine disrupters.

Once the product formulation is entered into the system, GreenWERCS provides a product’s ‘green score’ and a visual analysis on how its products rank and where the most immediate opportunities are to reformulate without hazardous chemicals.

User-defined

One of the most unique features of GreenWERCS is the user-defined configuration. Because each organization has its own criteria for greener chemistry, GreenWERCS allows companies to easily develop their own algorithms based on the organization’s sustainability requirements. GreenWERCS enables innovative chemical companies to stay committed to being green by adapting to the ever-changing regulatory landscape.

For more information on GreenWERCS and The Wercs’ entire suite of chemical compliance tools, visit www.thewercs.com/GreenWERCS.

About the “Profiles in Sustainability” Award

Informex’s “Profiles in Sustainability” award recognizes both environmentally friendly and economically viable achievements in the chemical and energy industries. The best five initiatives of sixteen submissions were selected by a panel of judges, including Bob Peoples, Director of the American Chemical Society’s Green Chemistry Institute; Adrienne Henny, Manager of SOCMA’s ChemStewards; Doris De Guzman, Associate Editor of ICIS Chemical Business; and Clay Boswell, Senior Features Editor at ICIS Chemical Business.

About The Wercs, Ltd.

Established in 1984, The Wercs, Ltd. streamlines hazard communications and advances business process efficiency through its material safety data sheet (MSDS) authoring solution, The WERCS (Worldwide Environmental & Regulatory Compliance Solution). The company offers tools and services for MSDS authoring, as well as GHS- and REACH-compliant solutions for all companies, regardless of size and geography. For more information on The Wercs, please call 1- 800-572-6501 or visit http://www.thewercs.com.

Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/mmg.cgi?eid=6184982&lang=en