5-Year Review of +Vantage Vinyl®: Call for Feedback

The Vinyl Sustainability Council (VSC) created +Vantage Vinyl® as a voluntary initiative to advance the U.S. vinyl industry’s contribution to sustainable development. It aims to drive continuous improvement across all three sectors of sustainability – environmental, social, and economic performance – through the combined efforts of companies across the entirety of the U.S. vinyl value chain.

The +Vantage Vinyl program standard (the Standard) is comprised of Guiding Principles that help set the direction and parameters for what companies strive to achieve over time and are a core element of the Standard. The Guiding Principles are organized within five pillars that serve as the guideposts for companies on their journey of continuous improvement. The five pillars represent: environmental stewardship, social diligence, economic soundness, collaboration, open communication.

The +Vantage Vinyl program has a commitment to continuous improvement, and never assumes that today’s performance is the best achievable. Currently, the Standard is undergoing its 5-year review process, and we are looking for feedback on all aspects, including the Guiding Principles. The Vinyl Sustainability Council uses a consensus-based process to revise the Standard and Guiding Principles.

Public comment is sought at an initial 30-day review period at the start of the process. All comments are reviewed by a Standard Review Committee (SRC) consisting of a balanced representation of VSC membership from throughout the vinyl value chain. Updates to the Standard by the SRC are reviewed and approved by the VSC Verification Committee and the VSC Leadership Team. A final public review of the final draft of the Standard occurs at the end of the update process. Any public comments are resolved within the SRC, and the final updated Standard is put forth by the Verification Committee to the VSC Leadership Team for vote. If approved, the updated Standard is published and implemented in the next calendar year.

The first call for feedback and comments on the +Vantage Vinyl Standard and Guiding Principles will be open for 30 days—until April 25, 2024. Please reach out to Jennifer Armstrong (jarmstrong@vinylinfo.org), Director of Sustainability, to submit feedback.

Please click here to access the +Vantage Vinyl Standard.