175
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
J. Cays, An Environmental Life Cycle Approach to Design,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-63802-3_9
Chapter 9
Case Studies
Abstract Using analytical tools is a good first step to making better data-driven
design decisions. The second, even more important, step in the process is interpreting and acting on the results. The results of the LCIA phase of an LCA study will
rarely produce a clear “winning” design option that is obviously better than the others under consideration. A properly framed and conducted study does, however,
provide a clearer picture of the environmental impacts associated with various
design component. It is then up to the designer to weigh the pros and cons of each
decision, guided by a clearly stated goal and scope of the study. This chapter will
address both the ways in which each of the LCIA tools best function as well as how
the results of the tools can be used to affect positive change in design decisions at
the building component scale. The general workflow followed in the case studies
here can be applied to many other design disciplines working at smaller and
larger scales.
All of the LCIA tools are founded on the same scientific framework, introduced
in Chap. 5; pull from overlapping data sources, presented in Chap. 7; and use the
same LCIA method, described in Chap. 8. Even with the differences in methodologies used by each tool, which make studies completed in different programs not
comparable, there is overall common agreement in the results of studies completed
across multiple tools looking at the same set of design elements. In most cases each
tool will lead a user to the same general conclusions regardless of what tool is
being used.
9.1 The MIA
The module for impact assessment (MIA) is a small, theoretical project that serves
as a framework of different building constructions and material choices. The MIA
is a two-story box, roughly 25′ × 40′, with only a structural system and exterior
envelope. The structure is modeled after Le Corbusier’s Maison Dom-Ino
(Foundation Le Corbusier n.d.) (Fig. 9.1). The MIA was used to analyze the results
of the three WBLCA tools and determine what similarities and trends exist across
the results of the different tools. The project is assumed to be located in the Northeast
United States, and a 100-year service life was used for the project. The results are
all calculated for life cycle stages A–C and omit module D. One Click LCA does not
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
J. Cays, An Environmental Life Cycle Approach to Design,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-63802-3_9
Chapter 9
Case Studies
Abstract Using analytical tools is a good first step to making better data-driven
design decisions. The second, even more important, step in the process is interpreting and acting on the results. The results of the LCIA phase of an LCA study will
rarely produce a clear “winning” design option that is obviously better than the others under consideration. A properly framed and conducted study does, however,
provide a clearer picture of the environmental impacts associated with various
design component. It is then up to the designer to weigh the pros and cons of each
decision, guided by a clearly stated goal and scope of the study. This chapter will
address both the ways in which each of the LCIA tools best function as well as how
the results of the tools can be used to affect positive change in design decisions at
the building component scale. The general workflow followed in the case studies
here can be applied to many other design disciplines working at smaller and
larger scales.
All of the LCIA tools are founded on the same scientific framework, introduced
in Chap. 5; pull from overlapping data sources, presented in Chap. 7; and use the
same LCIA method, described in Chap. 8. Even with the differences in methodologies used by each tool, which make studies completed in different programs not
comparable, there is overall common agreement in the results of studies completed
across multiple tools looking at the same set of design elements. In most cases each
tool will lead a user to the same general conclusions regardless of what tool is
being used.
9.1 The MIA
The module for impact assessment (MIA) is a small, theoretical project that serves
as a framework of different building constructions and material choices. The MIA
is a two-story box, roughly 25′ × 40′, with only a structural system and exterior
envelope. The structure is modeled after Le Corbusier’s Maison Dom-Ino
(Foundation Le Corbusier n.d.) (Fig. 9.1). The MIA was used to analyze the results
of the three WBLCA tools and determine what similarities and trends exist across
the results of the different tools. The project is assumed to be located in the Northeast
United States, and a 100-year service life was used for the project. The results are
all calculated for life cycle stages A–C and omit module D. One Click LCA does not