Who Helps Manufacturers Create an HPD? Approved Preparers vs. Third-Party Verifiers

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A Health Product Declaration (HPD) is a standardized report in which a building product manufacturer discloses a product’s ingredients and their associated health hazards. Manufacturers can prepare one themselves, but many hire an HPD Approved Preparer, a consulting firm vetted by the HPD Collaborative, and some later hire a separate approved verifier to audit the finished document.

Elixir Environmental develops HPDs for building product manufacturers through a five-step process (Inventory, Assess, Compliance, Accessories and Summarize) and gathers ingredient data through the supply chain.

What is an HPD?

An HPD is a manufacturer’s self-declaration, written in a standard format so that architects and designers can compare products. The format is set by the HPD Open Standard, a consensus standard governed by the HPD Collaborative (HPDC), a not-for-profit with more than 350 member organizations. Version 3.0 of the standard took effect in September 2025.

There are two kinds. A Product HPD covers a finished product as delivered to the job site. A Supplier HPD covers an ingredient or material as delivered to a manufacturer, which lets suppliers share data without exposing formulas. Published HPDs sit in HPDC’s free Public Repository.

Who helps manufacturers create an HPD?

Three kinds of help exist, and each has a different job. Internal teams can build an HPD directly in HPDC’s HPD Builder software. Approved Preparers are outside consultants who help draft it. Approved verifiers audit it after it is finished. The manufacturer remains responsible for the content in every case.

What does an HPD Approved Preparer do, and what is off-limits?

An Approved Preparer advises the manufacturer while the HPD is being drafted. Preparers can also collect confidential ingredient data from suppliers under their own nondisclosure agreements, which often unlocks data a supplier will not hand to the manufacturer directly.

Preparers do not run lab tests, assess a product’s performance or declare one product “preferable” to another. To earn approval, a firm must be an HPDC General Member, show five years of relevant experience in fields such as toxicology, chemistry or material science, do all work in-house and document conformance with ISO 17065. Its staff must complete HPDC training before preparing any HPD, and the firm is audited every year. Applications go through staff review, an audit and a review panel before HPDC’s Technical Committee gives final approval.

Where do manufacturers find an HPD Approved Preparer?

HPDC publishes the list on its Approved Preparer program page, which links to a directory of current preparers. HPDC does not set preparer fees; each firm prices its own services, so ask for a scope that covers supplier outreach, hazard screening and publication.

What is HPD third-party verification?

Third-party verification is an independent desk audit of a finished HPD and its supporting documents. A verifier checks three things: that the HPD complies with the Open Standard, that the reported formulation matches the documentation, and that any undisclosed proprietary ingredients are represented accurately. There is no site visit, lab test or performance review, and HPDC is explicit that verification is not a product certification.

The manufacturer starts the process by contracting an HPDC-approved verifier; HPDC lists 10 of them on its verification program page. Verifiers meet the same entry requirements as preparers. HPDC also reviews each new verifier’s first three verified HPDs and spot-checks 5–10% of verified HPDs each year. HPDs created under version 2.1 or later are eligible. A verified HPD carries a verified version of the HPD label and can be filtered for in the Public Repository.

How do preparers and verifiers compare?

Question Approved Preparer Approved verifier
When it works While the HPD is drafted After the HPD is finished
Main job Advise, gather supplier data, help publish Audit the finished HPD against its records
Can it handle confidential supplier data? Yes, under its own NDAs Checks that undisclosed data is represented accurately
Can it work on the same HPD as the other role? No No
Is the result a certification? No No; HPDC says verification is not a certification
Required? Optional Optional

How do the steps fit together?

  1. The manufacturer decides whether to prepare the HPD in-house or hire an Approved Preparer.
  2. Suppliers disclose ingredients, directly or under a preparer’s NDA, sometimes as Supplier HPDs.
  3. The HPD is built in HPD Builder under the current Open Standard and screened for hazards.
  4. The manufacturer publishes it to the Public Repository.
  5. If wanted, a separate approved verifier audits it, and the HPD gains the verified label.

FAQ

Is an HPD a certification that a product is safe? No. An HPD is a disclosure of ingredients and hazards, not a judgment that a product is safe or preferable. Verification does not change that.

Can a manufacturer write its own HPD without a consultant? Yes. HPDs are manufacturer self-declarations, and HPD Builder is open to manufacturers. A preparer mainly helps with supplier data, hazard screening and getting the format right.

When did third-party verification start? HPDC launched its Third Party Verification program in October 2017, and HPDC manages the credentials and method that verifiers follow.

Do older HPDs still count after the move to version 3.0? HPDs made under version 2.3 or earlier stay valid until their existing expiry dates and can be updated to version 3.0 in HPD Builder.

Does version 3.0 check LEED readiness? Version 3.0 builds a LEED v4/v4.1 pre-check into the Open Standard. HPDC calls it a preliminary indicator of consistency, not a review of data quality or full compliance. Its guidance also ties LEED v4.1’s higher product valuations for material ingredients to third-party verification.

What new disclosures does version 3.0 add? HPD Builder’s 3.0 update added a PFAS attestation and screening tool, an EU HPD format, an alloying element inventory and new compliance fields.

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