PRODUCT CARBON FOOTPRINT AND LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT

Organisations face a myriad of challenges related to sustainability, environmental protection, and climate change. Addressing these issues necessitates a comprehensive understanding of a product's environmental impact, from raw material extraction to end-of-life disposal. 

This is where Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) and Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) come in. PCF and LCA help companies navigate through the complexities that come with their product lifecycle management. A conformity assessment such as PCF verification and LCA critical review provides companies with impartial third-party assurance.

WHAT IS PRODUCT CARBON FOOTPRINT? 

Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) is a technique used to calculate, manage, and communicate greenhouse gas emissions associated with the life cycle of products. 

OUR PRODUCT CARBON FOOTPRINT (PCF) SERVICES

PCF Quantification

Based on ISO 14067 standard, the PCF analysis produces a total GHG emissions and GHG removals value in a product system, expressed in CO2-equivalents, that corresponds to a specified unit of product. 

PCF Quantification Methodology

• Defining Goal and Scope
  The organisation’s commitment to define system boundary, timelines and methodology expected outcome of the assessment is outlined.
• Inventory Analysis
  Description of material and energy flows within the product system and especially its interaction with environment, consumed raw materials, and emissions to the environment.
• PCF Calculation
  Calculation is done based on the standard ISO 14067 as per data received for Scope 1, 2 and 3.
• Interpretation
  Interpretation of the calculation results leading to report generation

PCF Verification

PCF verification is an essential process in the circular economy, ensuring the accuracy of primary data used in calculating what is the carbon footprint of a product. This process involves both on-site and on-desk assessments to confirm the truthfulness of a study's CO2-footprint claim. Through this methodology, companies can confidently communicate their products’ environmental impact and make informed decisions to improve their sustainability efforts. 

WHAT IS LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT (LCA)?

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a method for calculating, managing, and communicating the environmental impacts associated with the life cycle of a commercial product, process, or service. It is a tool for systematically analysing the environmental performance of products or processes over the entire life cycle. A LCA study involves a thorough inventory of the energy and materials that are required across the industry value chain of the product, process, or service, and calculates the corresponding emissions to the environment.

Based on ISO 14040 and ISO 14044 standards, LCA examines the effects of a product on various impact categories, providing an overview of the environmental consequences linked to a defined functional unit of a product or service.

LCA Methodology

• Defining Goal and Scope
  The organisation’s commitment to define system boundary, timelines and methodology expected outcome of the assessment is outlined.
• Inventory Analysis
  Description of material and energy flows within the product system and especially its interaction with environment, consumed raw materials, and emissions to the environment.
• Impact Assessment
  The indicator results of all impact categories are detailed in this step; the importance of every impact category is assessed by normalization and eventually also by weighting.
• Interpretation
  Interpretation of a life cycle involves, determination of data sensitivity, and result present in alignment with committed deliverables.

LCA Critical Review

A critical review of LCA focuses on evaluating the methodology and the LCA report through an on-desk assessment. This review process aims to determine whether the LCA study conforms to ISO 14040 and ISO 14044 standards unambiguously. By verifying the LCA's adherence to these standards, companies can ensure the accuracy and reliability of their environmental impact assessments.

 PROCESS OF LCA AND PCF

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PRODUCT CARBON FOOTPRINT AND LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT?

While Product Carbon Footprint and Life Cycle Assessment are often interchanged, they have slightly different goals. 

BENEFITS OF LCA / PCF

	Create trust and value on your sustainability claims Avoid being accused of “greenwashing" and reduce the risk of untrue claims by having extensive checks performed by an impartial third-party.
	Compliant and meet global sustainability goals Growing regulations require companies to measure and report their environmental impact, making overarching sustainability efforts crucial.
	Building credibility Enhance market reputation and reassure stakeholders by providing assurance that the results of their carbon footprint calculation for goods or services are trustworthy.
	Boosting environmental sustainability without compromising core IP OEMs and brands that wish to boost their market reputation and product differentiation through environmental sustainability claims can influence upstream supply chains to make accurate and reliable product emission data available.

Get in touch today. Our global network can help your organisation with the requirements and available standards and schemes for different industries.