ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an overview of how embodied carbon is calculated, and presents typical values for office buildings and how this compares to operating carbon. The majority of ECO2 factors are based on generic or typical materials and products. To aid the selection of low-carbon products it would be useful if a similar approach to food labelling was adopted. The most important aspect of calculating the embodied carbon, irrespective of the methodology used, is to obtain the breakdown by materials or elements for a particular building. The increasing use of 3D computer graphics technology and Building Information Modelling from the schematic design stage of projects onwards will make it easier to determine the quantities of primary building materials, such as steel and concrete. The component of the whole life cycle that is probably most open to interpretation and uncertainty is the assumptions made regarding the disposal of a material.
