Owners and consultants increasingly ask for EPDs to compare embodied carbon and material impacts apples-to-apples. A construction material laboratory doesn’t issue the EPD itself—that’s typically done by a program operator—but we supply the verified measurements you need to build a defensible LCA.
EPD basics & why clients ask
EPDs translate a product’s environmental footprint into a standardized, third-party–verified document. For UAE projects chasing LEED/BREEAM or internal ESG targets, EPDs de-risk selections and speed approvals. Your construction material laboratory provides the measured properties and production data quality that underpin those claims, so specifiers can trust the numbers across Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Sharjah.
Lab data needed for LCA
Think in two buckets: plant/process, then performance.
Plant/process data (EPD inputs): energy and fuel use per batch/ton, water use, admixture dosages, raw material transport distances, and waste/returns.
Performance & compliance tests: compressive strength (by age), density, chloride permeability/RCPT (if requested), durability indicators, and mix constituents by mass. For concrete, accurate mix documentation (cement type/SCMs, aggregate sources, w/c ratio) is essential.
Traceability: batch IDs, dates, and calibration certificates so the LCA team can audit every figure.
Data quality & traceability
LCA models are only as good as their inputs. Your construction material laboratory should:
Capture LCA data at defined intervals (e.g., monthly rolling averages), not one-off snapshots.
Provide uncertainty notes (meter accuracy, sample frequency).
Maintain digital chain of custody from sampling to report.
Map raw materials to quarry/cement mill IDs so regional factors and transport legs are verifiable.
Submission pack best practice
Make your consultant’s life easy with a single “EPD data kit” that includes:
Mix design sheets and batch tickets (PDF + CSV).
Energy/water logs normalized per unit output.
Transport legs (origin → plant) with distances and modes.
Test reports (strength series, RCPT/durability if applicable) with ISO 17025 details.
A read-me that explains assumptions, time windows, and any seasonal variance (e.g., chilled water/ice use in summer).
FAQs
Can ML issue EPDs?
We don’t act as a program operator, but we compile and verify the EPD inputs and test data your LCA practitioner needs to generate and register the EPD.
What timelines?
If your logs are organized, the data kit typically comes together quickly; add time for lab tests that require 7/28-day breaks or RCPT.
How often to update data?
Annually is common, or whenever you change cement type/SCM content, aggregates, or energy sources—any shift that materially affects the LCA.