Pre-assessment material intelligence is structured, indicative guidance on building materials at the early design stage, before a formal or certified life-cycle assessment (LCA). It gives teams comparable quantities, circularity pathways, indicative impact classes, material alternatives and cost ranges, so they can shape decisions while those decisions are still open. It informs the conversation early; it doesn’t certify the result later.
This matters because the early stage is where most embodied carbon, cost and circularity potential is decided, often with the least structured information to hand. A pre-assessment fills that gap without pretending to be something it isn’t. For the method itself, see how to estimate it at concept stage.
The short version
- Pre-assessment is the stage before a formal/certified LCA, where material decisions lock in most of a building’s embodied carbon, cost and circularity outcomes.
- Material intelligence means structured, comparable inputs at that moment: quantities, circularity pathways, indicative impact classes, alternatives and cost ranges.
- The output is indicative, for comparison — not for certification, compliance or official reporting.
- It complements a later LCA, EPD or RICS Whole Life Carbon Assessment; it doesn’t replace one.
- As operational energy decarbonises, embodied carbon becomes a larger share of whole-life carbon (World Green Building Council, “Bringing Embodied Carbon Upfront”, 2019) — which raises the value of getting early material decisions right.
Why does the early stage decide the most carbon?
Most of a building’s embodied carbon, and much of its cost and circularity potential, is committed by early material choices. By the time a structural calculation is run or a certified LCA is commissioned, the big levers, structural system, envelope, retain-or-replace, are largely set. The buildings and construction sector accounts for roughly 37% of global energy- and process-related CO₂ emissions (UNEP, Global Status Report for Buildings and Construction 2025-2026), and as grids and operational energy decarbonise, embodied carbon becomes a larger share of whole-life carbon (World Green Building Council, “Bringing Embodied Carbon Upfront”, 2019).
Here’s the awkward part. Those early, high-leverage decisions are usually made with the least structured information: scattered datasheets, rules of thumb, and experience. A formal LCA arrives later, once the design is fixed, when changing a material strategy is expensive or impossible.
That’s the gap pre-assessment material intelligence is built for. It brings comparable, decision-useful data forward to the moment the decision is actually made, see our pillar on embodied carbon in construction for why upfront carbon dominates.
What does “material intelligence” actually mean?
Material intelligence is a structured, comparable view of a project’s materials at the early stage, assembled to support a decision rather than to certify a result. In Elementa it covers five things: quantities, circularity pathways, indicative impact classes, material alternatives and cost ranges. Carbon comes from an ÖKOBAUDAT generic dataset (EN 15804+A2, modules A1–A3) pinned to each layer, and cost from a versioned 2026 Austrian reference of expert estimates by LX Design Studio. Every figure is indicative, for comparison only.
It’s worth unpacking each element.
Quantities
Everything starts with what’s there or what’s planned. Quantities can come from a new design brief or from an existing-building survey imported via IFC or DXF, tracked at material level across six element categories: Structure, Envelope, Finishes & Surfaces, Fixtures & Joinery, Furniture & Lighting, and Textiles & Comfort.
Circularity pathways
Each element gets a pathway, from most to least circular: Retain, Reuse, Refinish, Replace, New. Each carries an indicative carbon factor against the element’s baseline embodied carbon, Retain 0.05, Reuse 0.15, Refinish 0.40, Replace 1.10, New 1.00. Keeping something avoids most of its embodied carbon. That’s usually the highest-leverage move on a refurbishment. These factors are Elementa’s own modelling conventions for early comparison, not drawn from ÖKOBAUDAT or any published dataset, and they describe carbon only. The material carbon values behind a baseline come from the ÖKOBAUDAT dataset pinned to each layer; these multipliers do not.
Indicative impact classes
Rather than a single “exact” number, materials fall into three indicative bands. Impact classes are computed per cubic metre (carbon × density): Low below 200, Medium 200–800, High above 800 kg CO₂e/m³. A material with no density shows no class rather than a guess. Bands are deliberate. They’re honest about precision at a stage where precision isn’t yet available, and they’re enough to compare one strategy against another.
Alternatives and cost ranges
For a given element, the platform suggests materially comparable alternatives by typology, circularity logic and indicative impact class. Alternatives carry no price of their own; cost is estimated per assembly instead. For each assembly you choose an intervention, and Elementa multiplies a rate from its 2026 Austrian cost reference by a regional factor and the assembly’s quantity. The rates are expert estimates (Graz/Styria base, five Austrian regions), each with a stated uncertainty of mostly ±15–25 %, shown as a range; a quote you enter replaces the rate. Structure, facades, windows, interior partitions, floor finishes and ceilings are covered, for new build and refurbishment; roofs and doors are not costed yet. Carbon and cost in one view, so trade-offs are visible early.
Pre-assessment vs. formal LCA: what’s the difference?
The simplest way to put it: a pre-assessment helps you choose a strategy; a formal LCA helps you prove one. Pre-assessment material intelligence is indicative and comparative, designed for the open early stage. A certified LCA, EPD or RICS Whole Life Carbon Assessment is precise and compliance-grade, produced once the design is settled (RICS, Whole Life Carbon Assessment methodology). They answer different questions at different moments.
The two are complementary, not competing.
| Pre-assessment material intelligence | Formal / certified LCA | |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Compare strategies, inform decisions | Certify, report, demonstrate compliance |
| Timing | Early design, before commitment | Detailed design onward, after the strategy is set |
| Precision | Indicative classes and ranges | Exact, methodology-bound figures |
| Data | Generic datasets (ÖKOBAUDAT), an expert-estimate cost reference, from quantities/surveys | Project-specific data, EPDs, verified factors |
| Output | Comparable scenarios for dialogue | Certified report (LCA / EPD / RICS WLCA) |
A useful way to think about it: pre-assessment is the wide-angle lens that helps you point the camera; the formal LCA is the precise measurement you make once you’ve decided where to stand. Skip the first and you risk optimising the wrong design with great precision.
Elementa prices each layer from an ÖKOBAUDAT generic dataset pinned to that layer. It proposes the dataset that fits the project’s location first, generic before product-specific, and asks you when several fit equally. A layer with no dataset pinned stays unpriced and is left out of totals rather than given a default figure. For how generic datasets relate to product EPDs, see EPD vs generic dataset.
How does the workflow run?
The pre-assessment workflow has four steps, and none of them produces a certified figure. You input quantities, define pathways, compare strategies, and use the result to support a conversation. Each step builds on structured inputs priced from pinned ÖKOBAUDAT datasets, and the whole sequence is fast by design, the point is to inform a decision before it’s locked, not to generate a compliance report.
In practice it looks like this:
- Input quantities — from a new design brief, or from an existing-building survey via IFC/DXF import.
- Define pathways — compare material specifications on a new build, or classify each existing element as retain/reuse/refinish/replace/new on a refurbishment.
- Compare strategies — view indicative impact classes, material alternatives and indicative assembly costs side by side.
- Support dialogue — give designers, developers and investors structured, comparable data to decide together.
The new-build and refurbishment paths differ in an important way. On a new build you’re comparing specifications from a blank sheet. On a refurbishment you’re classifying what already exists, and the biggest carbon savings come from what you keep, not what you add. Both share the same indicative, comparative logic.
Where does pre-assessment stop, and a formal LCA take over?
Pre-assessment material intelligence stops at the decision; it does not certify, report or comply. Every value Elementa shows is indicative, limited to the product stage (A1–A3), for decision support only, and should not be used for compliance, certification or official reporting. When a project needs a verified number, for a building permit, a green-building rating, or investor reporting, that’s a formal LCA, EPD or RICS Whole Life Carbon Assessment, run by a qualified professional.
This boundary isn’t a limitation to apologise for. It’s the point. A pre-assessment that pretended to be certified would mislead exactly the people, architects, engineers, developers, consultants, who most need to trust it. Honest about precision early, precise and verified later.
FAQ
Is pre-assessment material intelligence the same as an LCA?
No. An LCA is a formal, methodology-bound assessment that produces certified figures, usually once the design is settled. Pre-assessment material intelligence is indicative and comparative, used earlier to choose a strategy. They serve different purposes at different stages and work well in sequence, pre-assessment first, formal LCA later.
Can I use the impact classes for compliance reporting?
No. The impact classes are indicative bands (Low, Medium, High), computed per cubic metre from the dataset pinned to each layer and intended for early comparison only. They are not for certification, compliance or official reporting. For verified figures, commission a formal LCA, EPD or RICS Whole Life Carbon Assessment from a qualified professional.
Does it work for refurbishment as well as new build?
Yes. On a refurbishment you classify each existing element by pathway (retain/reuse/refinish/replace/new) and compare upgrade strategies; the largest savings usually come from what you retain. On a new build you compare material specifications from the first sketch. Both use the same indicative, comparative method.
Where does the carbon and cost data come from?
Carbon comes from ÖKOBAUDAT generic datasets (EN 15804+A2, modules A1–A3), one pinned to each layer; a layer with no dataset pinned stays unpriced and is left out of totals. Cost comes from a versioned 2026 Austrian cost reference: expert estimates by LX Design Studio, with regional factors and a stated uncertainty of mostly ±15–25 %, for early comparison and not for tendering. A quote you enter replaces the reference rate. All figures are indicative and for comparison, not certified values.
Get early access
Pre-assessment material intelligence brings structure to the moment that decides the most carbon, cost and circularity, before the design is fixed and before a formal assessment is even possible. It informs the decision; the certified LCA comes later. Start a project or book a demo from the homepage.