Life Cycle Assessment Training Course

Participants can write a decision-focused goal statement for an LCA study.

• Goal statements specify intended application, audience and decision context
• Decision owners define whether results support design, procurement or disclosure
• Comparative assertions trigger additional ISO 14044 review and disclosure requirements
• Study commissioners, practitioners and reviewers assigned clear LCA responsibilities
• Intended audiences determine technical detail, assumptions and communication format
• Claims language tested against evidence available from the proposed study

Participants can formulate functional units that permit meaningful product comparisons.

• Functional unit quantifies the service delivered by a product system
• Reference flow calculates materials and processes needed for that function
• Performance characteristics prevent misleading comparisons between unequal product alternatives
• Service life, capacity and quality requirements incorporated into functional units
• Product utility defined using measurable customer or technical performance criteria
• Comparison bases documented before collecting inventory data or selecting alternatives

Participants can set and justify system boundaries for a defined product system.

• Cradle-to-gate, cradle-to-grave and gate-to-gate boundaries compared
• Process flow diagrams map unit processes, flows and external interfaces
• Cut-off criteria document exclusions by mass, energy and environmental significance
• Capital goods, employee travel and infrastructure assessed for material relevance
• Foreground and background systems separated for data collection and modelling
• Boundary decisions recorded with justification for later review

Participants can prepare an inventory data plan for primary and secondary sources.

• Inventory data plan assigns variables, sources, owners and collection periods
• Primary data collected from meters, bills, production records and suppliers
• Secondary datasets selected for upstream materials, fuels and transport processes
• Mass and energy balances check inventory completeness and internal consistency
• Activity data converted into model inputs using documented conversion factors
• Data collection protocols distinguish measured, estimated and proxy values

Participants can assess inventory data quality and document material limitations.

• Temporal, geographical and technological representativeness assessed against study requirements
• Pedigree matrices score reliability, completeness and source-specific uncertainty
• Data quality indicators identify priority gaps before impact calculations
• Supplier questionnaires request process yields, energy sources and transport distances
• Proxy datasets selected using documented equivalence and conservative assumptions
• Quality findings entered into an inventory data quality register

Participants can select and justify allocation methods for multi-output processes.

• Allocation avoided where subdivision or system expansion is feasible
• Physical allocation uses mass, energy content or causal process relationships
• Economic allocation assigns burdens using documented market value assumptions
• System expansion models substituted products and consequential market effects
• Co-products, by-products and waste classifications tested against process functions
• Allocation sensitivity analysis compares results under plausible methodological choices

Participants can model end-of-life scenarios and recycling flows transparently.

• Collection, sorting, recycling, incineration and landfill modelled as distinct processes
• Open-loop and closed-loop recycling represent different burden allocation choices
• Recycled content approach assigns upstream burdens to secondary material inputs
• End-of-life recycling credits require explicit substitution and quality assumptions
• Waste treatment scenarios use regional collection rates and treatment technologies
• Material degradation and recovery yields tested through end-of-life sensitivity cases

Participants can model transport, energy supply and product use assumptions.

• Transport inventory combines distance, mode, load factor and backhaul assumptions
• Electricity modelling distinguishes location-specific grids from market-based supply contracts
• Fuel combustion includes upstream extraction, refining and distribution burdens
• Use-phase scenarios define user behaviour, maintenance and product lifetime
• Energy-consuming products model duty cycles, standby loads and efficiency degradation
• Scenario parameters documented with sources, ranges and decision relevance

Participants can select impact categories and characterize inventory flows appropriately.

• Classification assigns inventory flows to relevant environmental impact categories
• Characterisation factors convert flows into common category indicator results
• Midpoint indicators include climate change, acidification and eutrophication potentials
• Human toxicity, ecotoxicity and resource-use indicators require method-specific caution
• Endpoint methods aggregate damage pathways for health, ecosystems and resources
• Impact method selection reflects geography, audience and decision purpose

Participants can calculate and report product carbon footprints using ISO 14067 principles.

• Global warming potential converts greenhouse gas flows into carbon dioxide equivalents
• ISO 14067 requirements applied to product carbon footprint studies
• Biogenic carbon, land-use change and delayed emissions require explicit treatment
• GHG Protocol Product Standard compared with ISO 14067 applications
• Carbon footprint boundaries aligned with functional units and reference flows
• Climate results separated from broader LCA conclusions and trade-off claims

Participants can interpret impact results without obscuring methodological uncertainty.

• Normalisation compares category results against reference environmental burden inventories
• Weighting reflects value choices and requires transparent stakeholder communication
• Contribution analysis identifies processes, materials and stages driving results
• Hotspot charts distinguish dominant burdens from insignificant model detail
• Trade-offs assessed across climate, water, toxicity and resource categories
• Interpretation statements separate calculated results from value-based recommendations

Participants can test whether conclusions remain valid under changed assumptions.

• Sensitivity analysis changes influential assumptions one variable at a time
• Scenario analysis compares plausible future systems, technologies and behaviours
• Monte Carlo simulation quantifies uncertainty distributions for modelled results
• Parameter ranges derived from measurements, literature and supplier evidence
• Break-even analysis identifies conditions that reverse comparative conclusions
• Uncertainty communication avoids false precision in charts and executive summaries

Participants can specify controls for transparent and reproducible LCA models.

• LCA software models unit processes, product systems and linked datasets
• Database version control preserves reproducibility of calculated study results
• Process documentation records dataset sources, transformations and modelling choices
• Naming conventions distinguish foreground data, scenarios and calculated outputs
• Model checks detect unit errors, duplicate flows and missing connections
• Software outputs reviewed against hand calculations and mass-balance checks

Participants can prepare an LCA study for internal review or external critical review.

• ISO 14044 review scope examines methods, data, interpretations and reporting
• Critical review panels assess comparative assertions disclosed to the public
• Review questions trace conclusions back to assumptions, datasets and calculations
• Independent reviewers assess consistency with goal, scope and intended application
• Corrective actions distinguish editorial gaps from conclusion-changing model defects
• Review records document findings, responses and final methodological decisions

Participants can explain how LCA evidence supports Environmental Product Declarations.

• Environmental Product Declarations communicate verified results using product category rules
• ISO 14025 establishes Type III environmental declaration principles
• Product category rules define functional units, boundaries and impact indicators
• EN 15804 provides construction-product EPD calculation and reporting rules
• EPD modules separate product, construction, use and end-of-life stages
• Verification evidence reconciles declared results with supporting LCA documentation

Participants can convert LCA hotspots into design and procurement requirements.

• Eco-design options target material intensity, energy demand and product longevity
• Design alternatives screened using consistent functional performance and boundary assumptions
• Supplier specifications request traceable environmental data and declared assumptions
• Life cycle costing complements environmental results without combining incompatible indicators
• Procurement criteria distinguish minimum requirements from weighted environmental evaluation
• Improvement roadmaps prioritise actions by impact reduction, feasibility and evidence quality

Participants can prepare clear LCA reports and decision briefings for varied audiences.

• ISO 14044 reports document goal, scope, inventory, impacts and interpretation
• Executive summaries present hotspots, uncertainties and decision-relevant recommendations
• Result charts label functional units, boundaries, methods and comparison bases
• Claims substantiation links each environmental statement to supporting study evidence
• Technical annexes retain datasets, assumptions, calculations and review records
• Stakeholder briefings explain limitations before communicating improvement conclusions

Participants can establish an internal process for commissioning and using LCA studies.

• LCA governance assigns study ownership, technical approval and claim sign-off
• Study briefs define decision questions, deliverables, timelines and review expectations
• Data governance controls supplier confidentiality, access rights and retention periods
• Materiality screening prioritises product portfolios for detailed assessment
• Internal review gates test scope, data readiness, results and communications
• Annual improvement plans connect LCA findings with design and procurement actions

Participants can build, review and present a complete LCA study with defensible conclusions.

• Study brief defines product system, decision question and intended audience
• Functional unit, reference flow and system boundary justified in writing
• Inventory workbook records sources, calculations, proxies and data quality ratings
• Impact results identify hotspots, trade-offs, uncertainty and improvement scenarios
• Peer review tests ISO 14044 alignment, traceability and claim validity
• Final presentation defends conclusions, limitations and recommended implementation actions