Material intelligence, in writing.

Embodied carbon, circular construction, and the decisions that shape a building's impact — before formal assessment.

• 29 August 2026 · Tools · Ökobilanz

  Choosing Embodied Carbon Software: a Guide by Job

  Building LCA tools are not interchangeable. Certification, funding evidence, early-phase decisions and quick checks are four different jobs.

• 29 August 2026 · Regulation · EPBD

  EPBD Deadlines for Embodied Carbon: 2027, 2028 and 2030

  Life-cycle GWP must appear on EPCs for new buildings over 1,000 m² from 1 January 2028, and all new buildings from 1 January 2030.

• 29 August 2026 · Regulation · EPBD

  EPD vs Generic Dataset: Which Carbon Data Does EPBD Accept?

  EPBD calculations expect product-specific EPDs where a product is chosen, and allow generic datasets where it is not. Both are legitimate.

• 29 August 2026 · Regulation · EPBD

  What Goes Into a Life-Cycle GWP Calculation: Modules A to C

  An EPBD life-cycle GWP calculation follows EN 15978 over a 50-year study period, covering modules A1 to C. Here is what sits in each.

• 29 August 2026 · Regulation · EPBD

  Pre-Assessment vs Certified LCA: What 2028 Actually Requires

  EPBD compliance needs a certified LCA. Pre-assessment is not a substitute — it stops you learning the figure too late to change it.

• 25 June 2026 · Embodied carbon · Circular construction

  Embodied Carbon in Construction: A Practical Guide

  What embodied carbon is, why it matters more as buildings decarbonise, and how to weigh it in early material decisions before formal assessment.

• 23 June 2026 · Circular Construction · Refurbishment

  Circularity Pathways: Retain, Reuse, Refinish, Replace, New

  Circularity pathways rank five choices for every building element, from Retain (0.05× carbon) to New (1.00×). Here's what each means and its cost direction.

• 20 June 2026 · Embodied Carbon · Circular Construction

  Reuse vs New Build: How Much Carbon Does Retention Save?

  Reuse vs new build carbon: retaining an element can avoid most of its baseline embodied carbon (Elementa's indicative Retain factor 0.05 vs New 1.00).

• 18 June 2026 · Embodied carbon · Data

  The ICE Database, Explained for Practitioners

  The ICE Database is an open embodied-carbon dataset giving kg CO₂e/kg values per material. Here's how to read it, what it covers, and where its limits are.

• 16 June 2026 · Refurbishment · Embodied Carbon

  Refurbishment vs Demolition: The Carbon and Cost Case

  Refurbishment vs demolition: retaining a building keeps embodied carbon already in place, while demolition discards it and adds new. Here's the case.

• 14 June 2026 · Materials · Embodied carbon

  Choosing Lower-Impact Material Alternatives by Impact Class

  How to choose lower-impact material alternatives using indicative impact classes, and what the classes do and do not tell you at concept stage.

• 12 June 2026 · Materials · Embodied carbon

  CLT vs Concrete vs Steel: Comparing Structural Systems

  CLT vs concrete vs steel embodied carbon, compared early-stage: mass timber tends lowest, concrete highest from cement, steel hinges on recycled content.

• 10 June 2026 · Embodied carbon · Whole-life carbon

  Embodied vs Operational Carbon: Why the Balance Is Shifting

  Embodied vs operational carbon explained: embodied is locked in by materials, operational by energy use. As grids decarbonise, embodied is gaining share.

• 8 June 2026 · Material intelligence · Workflow

  What Is Pre-Assessment Material Intelligence?

  Pre-assessment material intelligence structures material decisions early — quantities, pathways and indicative impact classes — before a formal, certified LCA.

• 5 June 2026 · Materials · Envelope

  Bio-Based Insulation: Wood Fibre and Low-Carbon Alternatives

  Bio-based insulation, wood fibre, cellulose, hemp, cork, wool, straw, generally carries lower embodied carbon than mineral wool or foam. Here's how to compare.

• 3 June 2026 · Refurbishment · Circular construction

  An Embodied Carbon Retention Strategy for Refurbishment

  An embodied carbon retention strategy for refurbishment: survey what exists, classify each element by circularity pathway, and retain high-mass elements first.

• 1 June 2026 · Cost · Circular construction

  Cost and Circularity with ÖNORM B 2061

  How indicative cost and carbon track each other across the five circularity pathways, and where ÖNORM B 2061 fits as a cost-structure reference.