What was new in 2018?

21st December 2018  - NS 3720 allows user-declared district heat  (Norwegian users)

The NS 3720 tool allows inputting a user-defined district heat profile in the Energy consumption data input form. Select "User-declared Norwegian district heat as kg CO2e" or "Fjernvarme, Norge, brukerdefinert, kg CO2e" in Norwegian and provide the annual CO2e emissions as kg of CO2e manually. Document the source of emissions factor in the comments field.  

 

18th December 2018  - Latest EPD Norge updated - circa 75 new datapoints

New EPD Norge datasets have been added to production.

 

11th December 2018  - Too high values in module D for specific wood products now corrected

End of life incineration carbon benefits (so-called module D impacts, impacts outside the building life-cycle) for several dozen mostly EPD Norge wood products calculated between 10 October and 10 December 2018 were significantly too high. As module D is not accounted towards the total results, this will not have changed total results. Any recalculation of a result or data stored at any time will now also calculate a correct figure in module D. This issue only concerned specific products.

 

3rd December 2018 - December 2018 software update (relevant for all users)

The focus of this release has been improving usability, adding value to the content and tools. It also includes updates for our UK users, including a RICS methodology compliant tool and workflow.

Read the release notes in full here.

 

22nd November 2018 - Workflow added for BREEAM International and Energie Carbone, LEED v4 workflow improved

New workflow content has been added to the platform. There is now a dedicated workflow that can be used with BREEAM International, BREEAM Espana, BREEAM NOR and BREEAM ES and BREEAM DE. For BREEAM UK, use the dedicated workflow tool.

 

The LEED v4 workflow has been substantially improved and it includes compliance guidance and instructions on baseline building generation and submission instructions.

 

Energie Carbone has now its own dedicated workflow (available in French) supporting the whole process from RSET reception to RS2E submission.

 

20th November 2018 - Norwegian reference building default materials updated in the new version 2018.1

Carbon Designer has been updated with new default materials in the new version 2018.1. This update was done to ensure default materials are as close to the Norwegian market average as possible based on client requests. The changes will on the average, reduce the Construction Materials (A1-A3) impacts by 12-14 % on larger buildings.

 

This will not change any previously saved material lists for reference buildings in any way. The data you have saved in the Building Materials query stays as it is. All data for which new profiles are replacing the old data points will stay available in the calculations, but can no longer be added again. However, if you access the Carbon Designer again for one of the previous projects, only the new default materials will be available.

 

The changes performed were the following:

• Default concretes were changed to Lavkarbonklass B from Lavkarbonklass C based on Statsbygg request.
• The structural steel data points were updated to ones with lower alloy content. This aligned these closer to market average impacts.
• The reinforcement steel used in precast elements were also updated to ones with lower alloy content.
• As new regionally more relevant CLT datapoints became available, the default Cross Laminated Timber datapoint was replaced

This is a one time change. Any future updates to reference building, excluding error corrections (e.g. to reflect market development, the inclusion of building services, or other parameters), when such are needed over time, are expected to become available as new versions alongside the current version.

 

Kindly note that if Lavkarbonklass B is not representative default for your project region, and unless your reference building rules forbid this, you can change the default material by 'Edit' feature in Carbon Designer.

 

1st November 2018 - Energie carbone now shows Carbone 1 & 2 values for Eges PCE (French users)

The Energie carbone tool now displays the maximum embodied greenhouse gas emissions levels Carbone 1 and Carbone 2 for building materials and technology (Eges PCE). To calculate these values fill in question Type de bâtiment in data entry form Description du projet. In addition, there is a separate table that displays Eges and Eges PCE values of the project.

 

30th October 2018 - Global carbon tool with biogenic storage released (all users)

A new add-on tool ‘Life Cycle Carbon – Global’ has been released. The tool accounts for global warming potential and biogenic carbon storage and can be used with both European and North American data-points. The tool allows calculating transports only in kilometres.

 

27th October 2018 - Nordic special character issue in import solved (Nordic users)

An issue with Nordic special characters in the import process has been solved. In certain cases, Nordic special characters were displayed as html numeric codes and prevented users from creating new mapping rules. This was addressed in a patch.

 

18th October 2018 - Level(s) tools account for biogenic carbon storage in materials (European users)

Level(s) life-cycle carbon and Level(s) life-cycle assessment tools now account for the biogenic carbon storage in wood-based materials. The results for biogenic carbon storage are reported as a separate column in the result table. This requires no action from the user.

 

18th October 2018 - Envision tool update (North American users)

The Envision tool has been updated and is now compliant with Envision v3 credits CR1.1, CR1.2, and RA1.1. The results are now arranged in 3 separate tables: Life-cycle assessment of materials, Life-cycle impacts of operational energy and Sustainable procurement and recycled material use. The recycled material and sustainably procured materials can be accounted for in the Construction materials data input form.

 

11th October 2018 - DGNB 2018 and International update (German users)

The DGNB DE tool has been updated and now is compliant with the 2018 version for all reporting purposes. It can also now be used for DGNB Innenräume 2018, as well as new certifications NaWoh and HafenCity. Main changes are:

• The calculation period for the tool is now user-editable in the input form “Calculation period”. For all existing projects set to 50 by default. This is necessary to adjust for Innenräume certifications.
  
• There is a new input form “Water consumption” that allows accounting for operational water. The water impacts are accounted only towards 'Use of net freshwater'.
  
• New reference values for version 2018 have been added and the tool supports a simplified method for DGNB version 2018 (multiplier of 1.2 applied).
  
• In the Results page at the bottom, all materials used are listed based on their KG DIN 276 classification
  

The DGNB International tool now has access to verified EN 15804 compliant EPDs. The access to EPDs is limited to EPDs issued by well-reputed European Program Operators and only data complying with EN 15804 and that is third-party verified is enabled for these tools. This increases the number of available datasets to over 5000. Currently enabled sources are AENOR, BauEPD, BRE, Cenia, DAPc, EPD Danmark, EPD Italy, EPD Norge, GBCe, IBU, INIES, ITB, International EPD System, ift Rosenheim, Kiwa BCS, RTS.

 

11th October 2018 - Level(s) tool update (European users)

For Level(s) tools we have added material classification based on “Level(s) – A common EU framework of core sustainability indicators for office and residential buildings; Part 3: How to make performance assessments using Level(s)” Table 1.1. The result report and graphs on the result page will be based on this classification.

 

5th October 2018 - NS 3720 update (Norwergian users)

The NS 3720 tool allows expanding the following stages in the results report to see all sub-constituents:

• A5 Construction/Installation process
  

• B4-B5 Material replacement and refurbishment
  

• B8 Operational transport
  

This change provides more transparency and allows understanding what activities in the stage contribute to the relevant life-cycle impacts.

In this connection, B4-B5 stages are added with transport and waste handling impacts of the replacements. Previously calculated B4-B5 results (which only included material manufacturing) can be seen by expanding the B4-B5 stage. A recalculation of the results will regenerate the B4-B5 results and include transport and waste handling impacts for the replacements as well. If you require maintaining identical scope, you can expand the B4-B5 stage and deduce the values for transport and waste handling from the result.

27th September 2018 - NS 3720 update (Norwergian users)

The NS 3720 tool is now supporting simultaneous calculation for the main scenario (with Norwegian 60-year energy mix) and main operational transport scenario for B8, and it also allows a secondary energy scenario and transport scenario to be calculated within the same design by using Alternative scenarios query.

The NS 3720 tool now supports also a three-digit classification for bygningsdel NS3541.

24th September 2018 - September 2018 software patch update (relevant for all users)

New tools and compliance modules

• Support for Green Star in Australia (credit 19A/19) and New Zealand (pilot credit). We have integrated AusLCI construction materials, Australasian EPD program and BPIC datasets are partially available with more being added. Also, the additional reporting impact categories are supported. Peer review is available from us, but you are also free to organize it yourself.
  
• We support the upcoming London Plan requiring LCAs for GLA referred developments.
  
• Our Infrastructure module is updated and we support now Envision v3 and High Speed Two P06 specifications, in addition to BREEAM Infrastructure, CEEQUAL and PAS 2080.
  
• One Click LCA is an officially approved tool for ILFI’s Zero Carbon Certification.
  
• Our NS 3720 module has several smaller updates (see Service Update Log), and by the middle of this week also is able to calculate at once the primary and additional scenarios.
  

New add-ons and add-on updates

• Compliance add-ons are available for BREEAM UK NC 2018, LEED v4 and NS 3720 reference building in the Workflow Manager.
  
• Carbon Designer has been improved and has now a generic European baseline building.
  

All packages

• General Information section is collapsed when you enter the project page
  
• Material search now enables searching by name and any other qualifying parameters
  
• Many other smaller improvements
  

Business and Expert

• Easier and more flexible data combine setting management in data import
  
• Improved LCA Checker interface and more detailed checks for LCA result correctness
  

Datasets

• Ökobau.dat 2017-I update available, and old Ökobau.dat 2016-I is inactivated. Your old data points are still available in your projects. New data can be added only from 2017.
  
• AusLCI integration for local energy and water supplies and Australian construction materials. AusLCI data can be used with both Green Star specific characterizations as well as CML ones, depending on the tool you use automatically without you having to worry about it.
  

A lot of other small improvements

• Creating a new design proposes the highest applied RIBA/AIA stage on the project as default (or stage 2 when nothing is chosen
  
• Before you enter LCA Parameters query, an explanatory screen shows to explain what the questions are asked for
  
• Entity types for which you have a license (e.g. Building) are highlighted under +Add
  
• Added icons to make the interface more intuitive
  

13th September 2018 - NS 3720 update (Norwergian users)

Carbon footprint, NS 3720:

• The stage A5 Construction/installation process now also accounts for material wastage during installation in addition to Construction site operations. The value can be specified in Building materials data input form under “Wastage %”. The default value when adding new materials is based on the material type. If you have previously added waste to site impacts questionnaire or used scenario for site impacts, please check it for duplicate waste streams.
  
• Building materials data input form now has a checkbox “Specific” that allows the user to indicate if the chosen material is the specific product used instead of a generic product as per NS 3720.
  
• The assessment period of the calculation can now be adjusted by the user in the Calculation period data input form. Use 60 for a typical assessment.
  

30th August 2018 - Infrastructure LCA tool update - for infrastructure LCA users

All infrastructure LCA tools can now access a centralized project level Parameters query. It allows setting default service lives and transport distances as well as allows local compensation target (if wanted). Using it will set generic products, and foreign manufactured products to resemble products manufactured in the target location. Using this is optional. If this is used, it should be used consistently across different projects. The local compensation method is peer-reviewed and approved by BRE for use in BREEAM; it is based on CEN/TR 15941.

 

29th August 2018 - BREEAM UK NC 2018 update (UK users)

BREEAM UK NC 2018: Following confirmation of this change from BRE, the BREEAM UK NC 2018 tool report generation no longer includes B6 energy nor B7 water. If you regenerate your report, these life-cycle stages will be removed. This does not affect compliance in any way and BRE has informed us that they intend to clarify this when manual eventually is revised.

 

23rd August 2018 - DGNB-DK and DGNB-DE (2018) update (German users)

Following on the express approval in DGNB 2018 edition and approval from Danish Green Building Council for DGNB-DK, we have now enabled in these tools access to verified EN 15804 compliant EPDs. The access to EPDs is limited to EPDs issued by well-reputed European Program Operators and only data complying with EN 15804 and that is the third party verified is enabled for these tools. This increases the number of available datasets to over 5000. Currently, enabled sources are AENOR, BauEPD, BRE, Cenia, DAPc, EPD Danmark, EPD Italy, EPD Norge, GBCe, IBU, INIES, ITB, International EPD System, ift Rosenheim, Kiwa BCS, RTS.

 

We would also like to remind DGNB and BNB users that the entire ÖKOBAU.DAT database will be updated to version 2017-I in the near future. All datasets are replaced on as-is basis and this does not require any action.

 

17th August 2018 - August 2018 software update (relevant for all users)

All packages

• All pages show a breadcrumb trail of page hierarchy and queries are shown as tabs
  
• New design comparison graphs added
  
• Possibility to choose which calculation tools you wish to use for a specific design
  
• New support ticket handling system to improve customer service
  
• Possibility to document additional information on project level
  
• Several minor improvements and fixes
  

Business & Expert

• Faster access to Excel and gbXML imports directly from query pagesExcel
  
• Import allows choosing to combine material also when thicknesses vary substantially
  

New add-on – Carbon Designer

• Carbon Designer allows very quick baseline building creation with minimal knowledge about the project and enables optioneering choices and their impacts easily
  
• Carbon Designer also supports reference buildings (referansebygg) for NS 3720
  

Infra tools: improvements in data importing & HS2

• Infrastructure tool data import capabilities have been enhanced
  
• HS2-specific PAS 2080 tool has received several useful updates
  

CSR tools: tools updated to the GRI Standards

• All GRI environmental tools in the platform are now updated to GRI Standard
  
• Calculating at once both location-based and market-based Scope 2 emissions has been simplified
  
• New data, new reports and changes to queries are added
  

Tools and datasets

• Dutch NMD database was updated to version 2.2.
  
• Material searchability has been improved in a number of categories, especially finishes
  
• New data from several databases, including some 50 building technology products added
  
• Additional generic materials LCA data released, particularly for road construction
  
• Advance notice of upcoming changes
  
• ÖKOBAUDAT profiles will be updated to ÖKOBAUDAT 2017-I in the coming weeks. This does not require any user action. All existing data points will be automatically migrated to their up to date version. This database version is the mandatory version for BNB certification.
  
• Default end of life processes for all materials will be updated to the latest processes and LCA profiles as applicable for the relevant material type.
  
• Both changes will be applied to any existing results if the results are recalculated. To avoid an accidental recalculation, you can “Lock” your design.
  

French users: import generated FDES

• Support for importing FDES from national EPD generator. French customers using Business or higher license can upload generated FDES (EPD) to One Click LCA for Energie Carbone.
  

Minor improvements and fixes

• Material extra info is visible in all sized pages
  
• Portfolios contain more information about projects below “?” mark
  
• In the  Details and Detailed report you can now see the material details under “?” mark
  
• Many smaller changes and fixes in LCA Checker, Model Checker and other features
  

15th August 2018 - PAS 2080 for HS2 tool updates to reflect P006 requirements (UK infra users)

Report generation was simplified by introducing Asset Id as an additional question. The detailed report is sorted by this field. An additional classification field “Design discipline” was also introduced.

 

Life-cycle stages have been adjusted:

• A4 transport shows now combined transport for both earth masses and construction materials.
  
• A5 – Construction site operations query has an additional classification question which splits the result into different A5 subcategories (expandable in results page), being A5-1 (Site waste), A5-2 (Temp works & accommodation) and A5-3 (Other).
  
• B4-B5 is now expandable to sub-categories of replacements including their sourcing, transport and waste handling.
  
• Accounting for recycled-renewable materials and reused renewable materials is simplified by introducing specific fields for the share of such materials; they are represented directly in the results report. These are always zero by default.
  

For HS2 baselining, an HS2 specific electricity mix with GWP only based on forecasted decarbonization was added, and HS2 specific construction site scenario based on monetary value (GWP only). Additional new generic materials for infrastructure construction were also added.

 

For users who have data import enabled in their license, the HS2 specific additional data has also been enabled in infrastructure data import templates downloadable here.

 

Ecopoints v5 calculation had a flaw in the PAS 2080 tool, and this has now been corrected. A recalculation of saved results will correct the Ecopoints.

 

Local compensation of the construction materials manufacturing impacts was enabled in the HS2 tool. Using this is optional. If this is used, it should be used consistently across different projects. It can be set and accessed via the Parameters query. Using it will set generic products, and foreign manufactured products to resemble products manufactured in the UK (if the UK is selected as the target for compensation). The Parameters query also allows adjusting default service lives and transport distances. The local compensation method is peer-reviewed and approved by BRE for use in BREEAM; it is based on CEN/TR 15941.

 

13th August 2018 - NS 3720 update (Norwergian users)

The NS 3720 tool Operational transportation module has been updated. You can now specify the number of users and distances travelled per each user group individually.

 

10th August 2018 - BREEAM NL update (Dutch users)

We are happy to inform you that One Click LCA BREEAM NL tool has been verified and updated to use the latest NMD 2.2 database version.

 

18th June 2018 - NS 3720 and early phase carbon tool (Norwegian users)

The NS 3720 tool and the associated reference building Excel tool and the early phase tool have been updated. The principal changes in place now are:

• All reference energy scenarios (with reference building Excel and early phase energy scenarios) are applying by default now 60-year Norwegian electricity mix, instead of the previous EU28+Norway electricity mix.
  
• We have corrected calculation errors in non-residential passivhus energy profiles in Arctic conditions, as well as some other cases
  
• The “Early phase tool” is renamed “Site selection impacts”, or “Lokaliseringsvalg”
  
• Early phase energy scenarios have been withdrawn from the NS 3720 tool, and are only available via the “Site selection impacts” tool
  
• Numerous help texts and links to sources have been added
  

Tools will continue to evolve over the coming approximately one month, including the following upcoming changes:

• Operational transport module will be updated. This update is of such nature that old calculations will be invalidated until recreated
  
• Project description query is expected to be replaced with the LCA Parameters query, which is used in BREEAM assessments
  
• Calculation tools will be updated to allow simplified generation of the dual scenarios as required by NS 3720
  
• Other changes relevant for NS 3720 will be delivered once the standard is approved
  

9th June 2018 - June 2018 software update (relevant for all users)

All packages

• Alternative designs can be mapped to RIBA/AIA stages
  
• Life-cycle stages contribution visible in carbon clouds
  
• Breakdown graphs revised
  
• Implausibility warnings for material thicknesses
  
• Filter materials based on units
  
• Service update log and new user guidance
  

Business

• Carbon Heroes Benchmarks visible on the project’s main page
  
• Major Revit plugin update
  
• LCA Checker (beta) helps spot calculation issues
  
• Additional information in the materials and other popups
  
• Improvements in BIM Model Checker
  

Expert

• Green materials suggestions improved
  
• Additional project information in the portfolio
  

Tools and datasets

• New constructions for High Speed Two
  
• Shadow price and combined LCA/LCC in MPG/BREEAM NL tools
  
• Automated LCC tool update for BREEAM UK
  
• More than 10 000 active materials profiles
  
• First generic materials released
  

15th May 2018 - HS2 Carbon baseline profiles available (UK infra users)

We have added HS2 carbon baseline profiles to the database. These are based on agreed common main assumptions from the main works contractors (with the addition of water to the concrete recipes). They can be found searching with “HS2 baseline” and their composition is visible by expanding the relevant construction.

14th May 2018- NS 3720 and early phase carbon tool (Norwegian users)

We have added TEK10 energy profiles to the software, and the reference building template also now supports temperature sensitivity for a passive house in both very cold and high cooling load conditions.

 

Also, in the same update, we have added the NS3541 classification to the exported Excel reports for further analysis

14th May 2018- Life-cycle cost tools update (UK, Europe, North America)

We have updated all our Life-cycle cost tools to ensure the best possible user experience for each of them. Now all LCC tools are linked with the bill of materials so they can be seamlessly combined with LCA analyses and have both manual cost data entry as well as automated cost profile option (subject to license). Also, combined entries of some capital costs via materials and some via separate entries are now simplified in reporting for better readability. These changes are rolled out to all LCC users. The new LCC tools per region are: for UK Life-cycle cost, PD 156865:2008, for Europe Life-cycle cost (ISO 15686-5 & EN 16627), and for North America Life-cycle cost (ISO 15686-5). All these tools will also support combined quantities and costs uploading from Excel in the June software update.

 

9th May 2018- BREEAM International, NOR, SE and ES update (relevant for BREEAM users)

We clarify the use phase for BREEAM to cover the material replacements (B4-B5), energy use (B6) and water use (B7, optional). Furthermore, the waste indicator is changed to align with non-hazardous waste impact category of EN 15804. This update is approved by BRE.

 

30th April 2018 - IMPACT-compliant tool update (relevant for BREEAM UK users)

Following the introduction of IMPACT v5 database we have now successfully completed the approval for v5 version of IMPACT. This simplifies the reporting format of the IMPACT tool and makes material transportation distance, service life and wastage rate end-user editable. Also, you need to confirm the project assessment period (set at 60 years for BREEAM compliance). This update is approved by BRE.

 

17th April 2018 - April 2018 software update (relevant for all users)

All packages

• Terms of use and Privacy policy updated for GDPR compliancy (find the terms in the attachments)
  
• Two-tier material search helping you to locate the right materials
  
• Recommendations for materials from nearby areas
  
• Floating help toolkit in all pages
  
• Setting project basic parameters to enable LCA data quality check-ups
  

Business

• New Carbon Heroes Benchmarks added for life cycle embodied carbon
  
• Data input quality checker tool for design data import
  
• IESVE integration (version 2017 Feature Pack 4 or higher)
  
• DesignBuilder integration support (version 5.1. or higher)
  
• Ability to import reference building (now available for Nordic conditions)
  

Expert

• Annual impacts visualized for each year of the project
  
• Generate automated, visual Word reports*
  
• Create your own concrete recipes
  
• Create a report for multiple LCAs at once and export it to Excel
  

Tools and datasets

• BREEAM UK 2018 tools – officially verified and accepted by BRE
  
• BREEAM NL tool (officially verified)
  
• LEED v4 MRc1 LCA credit now officially accepts EN standards and One Click LCA tools are verified for compliance.
  

New user guidance pages and datasets

• BREEAM NL guidance page
  
• NS 3720 guidance page
  
• New video for searching materials
  
• How to check and correct your inputs in our new input checker tool
  
• ca. 1000 new datasets
  
• Database up to date with the latest versions of all major EPD programs around the world
  

Improved features and capabilities for all users

• Improved material search capabilities – search materials by type
  
• When searching for materials with a keyword such as a name or manufacturer, the tool shows all matching material categories and you can now easily narrow down the search to the right category.
  
• Recommendations for local and regional materials - We now automatically prioritize datasets based on project location from project country and region making it easier to find the best matching material datasets for your building.
  
• Help page recommendations for every page with our new floating toolkit - Expandable help toolkit helps you to easily find relevant guidance videos and articles for each page.
  
• Setting project basic parameters to enable LCA data quality check-up - We have added a new feature to set project-level basic parameters for LCA. The parameters questionnaire will collect the most vital project information that will enable us to provide quality feedback on your life cycle assessment results and help you to ensure calculation result quality with our new LCA checker feature (released in June 2018 release). Additionally, basic information results will be used for automated assessment reports. The basic parameters questionnaire will appear automatically when you start a new project as a mandatory step but the answers can be modified later from the “Parameters” button.
  
• Enhanced charts for comparison and spotting hot spots
  
• Downloading test datasets
  
• Easier sign-up process
  
• We have now replaced trees with the social cost of carbon, which is estimated to be 50 EUR or GBP per ton
  

29th March 2018 - HS2 tool users (UK infra users)

Please take note of following important information regards Ecopoints methodology and High Level Radioactive Waste Disposed (RWDHL) impact category. This is the category referred to as “Radioactive waste disposed of (high-level nuclear waste); RWDHL” in the BREEAM Infrastructure. This impact category is not part of the industry main standard EN15804:2012+A1:2013 and is no longer applied by BRE in IMPACT nor in BREEAM applications. As the category is facing withdrawal from the market, ensuring consistent calculations with the impact category will become untenable and we have moved to the latest version of BRE’s methodologies as follows:

 

With the latest update of IMPACT v5, BRE have done the following changes of relevance to the HS2 project reporting:

• BRE Ecopoints v5 characterisation no longer considers RWDHL, but instead uses “Radioactive waste disposed”
• This impact category has been dropped from the IMPACT dataset completely

One Click LCA has been updated to implement Ecopoints v5 methodology and latest IMPACT database and as part of this effort, we have updated HS2 tool. The reported impact category is Radioactive waste disposed of as per EN15804:2012+A1:2013.  This is the new impact category adopted by BRE following the withdrawal of Radioactive waste disposed of (high-level nuclear waste). Ecopoints heading has been labelled Ecopoints v5 in reference to the updated weighting factors for the BRE Ecopoints.