139
(Curran 2012). The update recognizes and incorporates many advancements in
LCIA methodologies, as well as address the need for consistent characterization
factors for regionalized impacts (Bulle et al. 2019). Of the tools presented here,
IMPACT World+ is only an option in SimaPro.
8.4 WBLCA Tools
Several LCIA tools exist for designers to use as a means of evaluating their work
and making more informed design decisions. Tally, One Click LCA, Athena Impact
Estimator for Buildings, and Solidworks Sustainability are all examples of tools that
make the elaborate and rigorous LCA process more accessible. Designers are not
LCA experts, and with the power of these tools they do not have to be. The dashboard of each of these programs acts as an interface between typical design workflows and LCA data. Workflows that traditionally have focused on describing,
quantifying, and evaluating the aesthetic, performative, and financial project details
can now integrate environmental impact data supported by scientifically supported
LCA studies. Each program behaves differently but helps to answer the same LCIA
questions. This chapter will take a detailed look at the dashboard of all four programs. Chapter 9 will demonstrate, through the lens of case study projects they were
applied to, the situations each program is best suited to in addition to how to use
them as decision-making tools for better, healthier designs.
These are not the only tools currently available, but they are four common tools
in North America. Three of these tools—Athena, Tally, and One Click LCA—were
designed with typical WBLCA practices in mind, while Solidworks Sustainability
is typically used to assess the environmental impacts of smaller, more detailed
design systems including building components.
8.4.1 A Note on Typical WBLCA Practices
The term “whole building” can be misleading when talking about these studies
because they are not typically inclusive of every building element. Standard practice
in North America is to include the building’s envelope, structure, and floors (Bowick
et al. 2017). These building elements typically account for over 90 percent of a
building’s total mass. Detailed interior assemblies, finishes, MEP systems, and site
work are typically excluded from these assessments. Assessing environmental
impacts on heterogenious lower mass elements increases model complexity, time,
and cost without materially affecting the final assessment of the main stucture, core
and shell of a building. Site work varies in area and volume and can easily be considered to fall outside the physical and methodological boundaries of a WBLCA. The
object of assessment of each study should, however, be individually determined in
tandem with the goal of each project and study.
8.4 WBLCA Tools
(Curran 2012). The update recognizes and incorporates many advancements in
LCIA methodologies, as well as address the need for consistent characterization
factors for regionalized impacts (Bulle et al. 2019). Of the tools presented here,
IMPACT World+ is only an option in SimaPro.
8.4 WBLCA Tools
Several LCIA tools exist for designers to use as a means of evaluating their work
and making more informed design decisions. Tally, One Click LCA, Athena Impact
Estimator for Buildings, and Solidworks Sustainability are all examples of tools that
make the elaborate and rigorous LCA process more accessible. Designers are not
LCA experts, and with the power of these tools they do not have to be. The dashboard of each of these programs acts as an interface between typical design workflows and LCA data. Workflows that traditionally have focused on describing,
quantifying, and evaluating the aesthetic, performative, and financial project details
can now integrate environmental impact data supported by scientifically supported
LCA studies. Each program behaves differently but helps to answer the same LCIA
questions. This chapter will take a detailed look at the dashboard of all four programs. Chapter 9 will demonstrate, through the lens of case study projects they were
applied to, the situations each program is best suited to in addition to how to use
them as decision-making tools for better, healthier designs.
These are not the only tools currently available, but they are four common tools
in North America. Three of these tools—Athena, Tally, and One Click LCA—were
designed with typical WBLCA practices in mind, while Solidworks Sustainability
is typically used to assess the environmental impacts of smaller, more detailed
design systems including building components.
8.4.1 A Note on Typical WBLCA Practices
The term “whole building” can be misleading when talking about these studies
because they are not typically inclusive of every building element. Standard practice
in North America is to include the building’s envelope, structure, and floors (Bowick
et al. 2017). These building elements typically account for over 90 percent of a
building’s total mass. Detailed interior assemblies, finishes, MEP systems, and site
work are typically excluded from these assessments. Assessing environmental
impacts on heterogenious lower mass elements increases model complexity, time,
and cost without materially affecting the final assessment of the main stucture, core
and shell of a building. Site work varies in area and volume and can easily be considered to fall outside the physical and methodological boundaries of a WBLCA. The
object of assessment of each study should, however, be individually determined in
tandem with the goal of each project and study.
8.4 WBLCA Tools