Base Materials develops proprietary LCA

Image courtesy Base Materials

Commissioned through third-party carbon accounting specialists MyCarbon, the bespoke dynamic tool enables Base Materials to generate accurate, product-specific carbon footprint data across its diverse materials range.

Designed specifically for Base Materials’ product portfolio, the tool provides a streamlined and efficient way to calculate carbon footprints across tooling boards, ancillary products and buoyancy materials, ensuring consistency and comparability across the entire range. While the tool itself is not customer-facing or commercially available, the outputs allow Base Materials to share verified environmental data with customers, supporting more informed material selection and enabling accurate supply chain carbon footprint calculations.

John Miller, Managing Director of Base Materials, commented: “Developing this LCA capability is a significant step in strengthening how we understand and communicate the environmental impact of our products. By working closely with MyCarbon to create a bespoke tool tailored to our materials and processes, we now have a consistent, credible way to quantify product carbon footprints and support our customers’ sustainability goals.

“This isn’t about offering a generic calculator; it’s about embedding environmental insight into how we operate. As customers face increasing pressure to report and reduce emissions across their supply chains, we want to provide data they can trust, backed by recognised standards and robust methodology.

“The tool also allows us to continue to be forward-thinking in our approach to innovation, firmly placing environmental data within our research and development process to support the drive to create solutions that reduce our impact on the environment.”

James Cuomo, Senior Carbon Consultant at MyCarbon, added: “Base Materials has shown in this project how LCA can move beyond compliance and become a strategic capability. By investing in a bespoke, standards-aligned LCA tool, Base Materials is putting high-quality environmental data at the heart of how it supports customers and develops its product range. It’s a strong example of how manufacturers can prepare for evolving customer, regulatory and supply-chain requirements.”

The new tool evaluates impacts from cradle-to-gate, covering raw material extraction through to processing and packaging of the final product. This provides a clear, consistent and credible assessment of embodied carbon, expressed as Global Warming Potential over 100 years (GWP100) and measured in kilogrammes of CO₂ equivalent (kg CO₂e).

The tool is fully validated by MyCarbon, aligned with ISO 14067 and the GHG Protocol Product Life Cycle Accounting and Reporting Standard, with environmental impact assessment conducted in accordance with ISO 14044. Life cycle impact calculations are based on the IPCC GWP100 methodology, ensuring internationally recognised and comparable results.