The importance of an EPD

An EPD encapsulates the quantifiable environmental impacts of a product’s life cycle, from manufacture and transport to end of life, in a single, comprehensive report. It includes a life-cycle assessment and environmental impact data comprising core environmental impact indicators, use of natural resources and end of life information. This might include impact data on embodied carbon, ozone, acidification and many other factors which could affect the environment.

EPDs are compiled from data gathered through a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) in accordance with EN 15804+A2 (the European standard for the sustainability of construction products) and ISO 14025/ISO 21930. The data would typically include production information on which the data is being collected (what is being produced, how much and over what period), raw material usage, transport, packaging, energy and fuel usage, water consumption, emissions (to air, water, soil, etc.) and waste outputs.

With an increasing global focus on environmental protection, EPDs form a key role in assuring regulators, control authorities, building professionals and their clients of a product’s environmental credentials as well as providing a means by which these can be quickly and easily assessed and incorporated within a project’s sustainability statements. Additionally, they are recognised, and valued, by many building certification schemes, such as BREEAM and LEED.

Chris Holleron, Sales Director of Metsec’s Framing Division comments, “The construction industry will come under increasing pressure to meet targets encompassing the entire design, construction and ultimate demolition of a building, including reuse of the materials from which it has been constructed. “In London, medium- and large-scale construction projects already require an EPD and carbon footprint statements as part of the planning application under the London Plan 2021, which aims to minimise greenhouse gas emissions and imposes specific requirements based on achieving net carbon zero by 2050.

“Net carbon zero also forms part of the government’s procurement policy, with the Cabinet Office’s Action Note PPN06/21 stipulating how government departments need to take account of suppliers’ Net Zero Carbon Reduction Plans when procuring for major government contracts. “Under these policies, all materials and processes used in construction will need to meet criteria designed to assure net zero carbon emissions. Along with other parties invested in the project, materials manufacturers will need to state and prove the environmental credentials of their products and systems.” Metsec has recently published an Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) covering its purlins and framing systems. Verified by independent EPD authority, EPD Hub, the declaration underlines the company’s commitment to sustainability and follows swiftly on the heels of its parent company, voestalpine AG, announcing a major initiative to achieve net zero carbon emissions in its Metal Forming Division by 2035, some fifteen years ahead of the targets set by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

Metsec’s Quality and BIM Compliance Director, Alan Harris, states, “As the UK’s largest designer and manufacturer of constructional steel systems, Metsec has always been at the forefront of the industry when it comes to setting, adopting, maintaining and verifying the most rigorous standards across all of its operations. “Our publication of EPDs emphasises our commitment to the environment and providing the construction team with clear, unequivocal information on the performance and environmental credentials of our systems.”

Whilst the process of making and converting steel into building components may appear carbon intensive, the advantages it offers can mitigate the building’s carbon footprint and once embodied within the steel carbon is not readily released.

At design stage, steel framing systems offer the potential for zero material wastage as all components are designed and manufactured to exact dimensions and assembled to strict tolerances.

This precision transfers to the construction phases of a project where lightweight steel framing reduces the burden on foundations and assures maximum efficiency in installation and logistics as components can be delivered and installed immediately. In addition, whereas many other building materials, such as timber, are not readily recycled or repurposed at the end of their working life, steel has a re-use and recovery rate of 95%, making it one of the most recyclable materials on earth.