Operational guidance for life cycle assessment studies of the Energy-Efficient Buildings Initiative
This document gives guidance and defines methods and provisions to conduct life cycle assessment studies within the framework of the Energy-Efficient Building European Initiative (E2B EI). It is intended for use by LCA practitioners within research projects of the E2B Public Private Partnership.
What is EeBGuide?
The European EeBGuide research project develops methods, rules and operational guidance for the preparation of life cycle assessment (LCA) studies for energy-efficient buildings and building products. Ongoing research under the framework of the Energy-Efficient Building European Initiative creates technologies for an energy-efficient Europe. LCA is used to assess the environmental benefits of new technologies. The EeBGuide manuals and guidance will support LCA practitioners in obtaining comparative results from their work.
Authors
Bastian Wittstock1, Johannes Gantner1, Katrin Lenz1
Tom Saunders2, Jane Anderson2, Claire Carter2, Zsoka Gyetvai2, Johannes Kreißig2, Anna Braune2
Sébastien Lasvaux3, Boris Bosdevigie3, Manuel Bazzana3, Nicoleta Schiopu3, Emmanuel Jayr3, Sylviane Nibel3, Jacques Chevalier3, Julien Hans3
Pere Fullana-i-Palmer4 , Cristina Gazulla4
Jo-Anne Mundy5, Tim Barrow-Williams5
Christer Sjöström6
1 Fraunhofer Institute for Building Physics (IBP), Germany
2 PE International AG, Germany
3 Centre Scientifique et Technique du Bâtiment (CSTB), France
4 Escola Superior de Comerç International (ESCI), Spain
5 BRE Global Ltd (BRE), UK
6 Prof Ch Sjöström Consultancy, Sweden
Disclaimer
The EeBGuide project is a Coordination and Support Action (CSA), co-funded by the European Commission under FP7.
Coordination and Support Action – ‘EeB.ENV.2011.3.1.5-2: Operational guidance for Life Cycle Assessment studies of the Energy-Efficient Buildings Initiative’
Contract: 285490 Start date of contract: 1 November 2011; duration: 1 year
The authors are solely responsible for this information, and it does not necessarily represent the opinion of the European Community. The European Community is not responsible for any use that might be made of the data appearing there.
Executive summary
Operational guidance for life cycle assessment studies of the Energy-Efficient Buildings Initiative (EeBGuide) is a European Commission funded project aimed at producing expert guidance for conducting life cycle assessment (LCA) studies for energy-efficient buildings and building products under the framework of the Energy-Efficient Building European Initiative (E2B EI).The EeBGuide guidance document will provide a common methodology supporting reliable assessment and comparison of efficient new buildings and products. It will support LCA practitioners in industry and research.
In order to ensure acceptance by LCA practitioners, the EeBGuide was developed with a strong focus on applicability. Therefore stakeholders and LCA experts were involved from the beginning, describing the questions and problems that usually appear while conducting an LCA study.
The critical questions and problems suggested by stakeholders and LCA experts were collected and documented. In response to the strong interest from LCA practitioners, those questions and problems were further explained and combined with potential solutions. The documentation was reviewed for relevance by internal and external experts, and amended for missing aspects. An additional workshop with European experts, and a public consultation with industry partners, provided further feedback on applicability.
The final EeB Guidance document is accessible as a web-based interactive document with filter functions to facilitate its use. It also provides links to further detailed information sources, training materials and reporting templates.