Panduit vs CommScope and Leviton: The EPD scoreboard
Panduit’s copper cabling catalogue lists fourteen Environmental Product Declarations, all expired four years ago, while CommScope and Leviton continue to field fully valid documents. If specs are chosen today, who wins the bid?
The scoreboard nobody can ignore
Building Transparency’s EC3 database shows a blunt tally: Panduit 0 valid EPDs, CommScope 7, Leviton 7 (Building Transparency, 2025). The fourteen Panduit sheets covering Cat5e to Cat6A cabling all time-out in 2021, so they no longer prove current impacts. Competitors keep theirs alive, and that difference pops off the chart like a red card on game day.
When the paperwork lapses, the spec vanishes
Public owners, Fortune 500 tenants, and carbon-capped campuses now ask for an EPD line in every structured-cabling submittal. Without one, estimators often strike a product before the conversation even starts. A 2024 Dodge Data survey found that 41 % of general contractors drop non-disclosed products from LEED-or-better projects (Dodge, 2024). No EPD, no seat at the table.
CommScope and Leviton keep the lights green
CommScope refreshed Cat 6A and Cat 6 EPDs last spring; Leviton reissued plenum and riser ranges in late 2023. Both are still valid today, giving sales teams an instant PDF answer when architects ask "Got an EN 15804 sheet?" In competitive quote decks that speed difference feels like broadband versus dial-up.
The margin math behind an expired badge
Structured-cabling projects for large data centers can clear seven-figure material scopes. Losing even one quarter of those bids because the EPD filter fails slices annual revenue more sharply than the cost of renewing a study. The irony? The life-cycle inventory already lives inside Panduit’s ERP exports, waiting to be updated.
Fresh declarations in sixty days
A specialist team that handles data wrangling, LCA modeling, and program-operator handoff can relaunch a family of copper-cable EPDs in roughly two months. With that, sales can chase specs they are currently missing out on.
Closing play
CommScope and Leviton walk onto every sustainability-screened project with documents in hand. Panduit can match that edge quickly by treating EPD renewal as a sprint, not a bureaucratic slog. The cost of delay? Another quarter of thier logo left out of bid tabs.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does it typically take to renew an expired EPD for data cabling?
With a streamlined data-collection workflow and experienced LCA partner, most copper-cable families can reach publication in 6–10 weeks.
Can a manufacturer publish directly without a third-party consultant?
Yes, but program operators still demand external verification. Most manufacturers outsource to avoid tying up internal R&D resources.
About the Author
With a passion for sustainability and a love for complex data, Toby helps manufacturers efficiently collect data from across their organization and get their EPDs done right. He’s especially interested in how AI can support human expertise, helping R&D and factory teams work faster, smarter, and with less friction.
