Starken Drymix Solutions, a Malaysian manufacturer of construction materials, engaged ESC to assess the environmental impacts of its mortar products and develop Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) to communicate their environmental performance to customers and other stakeholders.
About the Project
Construction material manufacturers face growing expectations to provide transparent information about their products’ environmental impacts. Customers, developers and stakeholders increasingly consider this information when making procurement and project decisions.
Communicating this information requires a reliable assessment of a product’s potential environmental impacts across the life stages covered. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) evaluates these impacts, while Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) report the results in a standardised format.
The client sought to assess the potential environmental impacts associated with producing its mortar products and publish the findings through EPDs for business customers and consumers.
Our Approach
ESC supported the client through its sustainability services, focusing on Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and EPD development.
- Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)
ESC conducted an LCA to assess the potential environmental impacts associated with the manufacture of the client’s mortar products. The assessment examined how production contributed to these impacts. The LCA was conducted in accordance with ISO 14040 and ISO 14044, the internationally recognised standards for LCA principles, framework, requirements and guidelines.
- Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) Development
Building on the LCA, ESC developed EPDs for the assessed products. These declarations present the findings in a standardised format, helping customers understand the products’ environmental performance and supporting comparisons where assessment methods, product functions and life cycle boundaries are equivalent.
The EPDs also help the client respond to requests for product-level environmental data from customers and other stakeholders.
Outcome
The project gave the client an assessment of its mortar products’ potential environmental impacts and EPDs to communicate the findings.
The assessment also identified and disclosed the potential for the cement content in the mortar products to absorb CO2 through carbonation. This gave the client additional insight into the products’ environmental characteristics and highlighted a carbon performance aspect that the client could communicate to customers and stakeholders.
Through the EPDs, the client can provide environmental data to support customers’ material selection and procurement decisions.
The project demonstrates how LCA findings can be translated into product declarations that manufacturers can use in customer communications.
As customer expectations evolve, this information can help construction material manufacturers address questions about their products’ environmental impacts.
Looking to communicate your products’ environmental performance? Contact ESC to learn more about our Life Cycle Assessment and Environmental Product Declaration services.