29 Trade Reports Carbon footprint certified company, by AENOR Dian suppliers will also be categorized, for this will help companies reduce costs. “Dian, consistent with its environmental awareness commitment, adds this new cer- tificate to those it already holds, namely the European Eco-Label, and confirms its status as a leading company, not only in Spain but in the European Union, for its environmen- tal policies and production strategies”, Ma- taix commented. The development is the result of a Euro- pean project, LIFE CO2Shoe,“Footwear carbon footprint” involving the collabora- tion of INESCOP and technological agen- cies in other European Union countries (Poland, Por tugal, and Italy), and of Dian, the European Footwear Confederation Dian is a company that took part in the pilot tests for the deve- lopment of an IT tool known as “CO2Shoe”, created by INES- COP, Instituto Tecnológico del Calzado y Conexas, to measure footwear carbon footprint. AENOR, Asociación Española de Nor- malización y Certificación (Spanish Standards and Certificates As- sociation) validated this tool and granted Dian the Carbon Footprint Certificate. “The tests we subjected our products to consisted in measuring and verifying the carbon footprint of one of our footwear styles, throughout the creation and manufacturing process.To this date there was no specific tool in the EU to measure CO2 emissions during the whole manufacturing process of footwear. So Dian takes pride in having been part of the development of this tool, as this also means recognition of our whole background as a com- pany that respects and takes care of our environment”, explained Joaquín Mataix, manager of Dian. The IT tool developed by INESCOP can measure the carbon fo- otprint of any kind of footwear throughout its lifetime, from its creation to the end, meaning it involves the use of materials, the li- fecycle, and final disposal of shoes.The Spanish Association of Cer- tificates and Standards (AENOR) validated the use of this carbon footprint measuring tool for the footwear industry sector in accor- dance to Standard ISO/TS 14067:2013, for Carbon Footprint me- asuring of products. Environmentally aware The tool can measure greenhouse effects for CO2, carbon dio- xide (carbon footprint) produced during the manufacturing pro- cess of shoes, and the packaging stage. This is an environmental management tool also measuring energy use, identifying the “hot stages” in the system, which means the study of materials and pro- duction stages with a greater impact on our environment. Though the major advantage of using this tool is environmental, it may also be used as an eco-design and marketing tool that impro- ves the image of brands (for carbon footprint levels will be shown on labels) thus differentiating companies from their competitors, and planning in advance, in accordance to standards. Clients and (CEC, in Spanish), and Federación de Industrias del Calzado Espa- ñol (FICE, Spanish Footwear Industry Federation).The project is supported in part by the European Union by means of the LIFE programme, scheduled to last until September, 2017.