As we edge closer to the 2050 Net Zero deadline and the world becomes more environmentally conscious, increasing attention is being paid to how the construction industry can build greener, with structural engineers having a key role to play. Read on, as we explore five ways to help you reduce embodied carbon in your structures.
While everyone has their own role to play in improving the ‘green’ nature of construction, engineers are in a prominent position to really make a difference, being responsible for changing the way in which our future structures and infrastructure are designed and built.
A more sustainable construction sector may be the overarching aim/objective, but there are many factors that feed into achieving this. Carbon modelling and a life-cycle analysis is one, with a significant portion of a building’s final embodied carbon value being specified as early on in the construction sequence as the initial design stage.
While not yet a legislative requirement on new construction projects, there is the potential for embodied carbon reports to become so in the future, or perhaps even the implementation of a carbon tax. Until this time, carbon modelling is set to become an increasingly common request from clients and developers. In fact, we are already seeing it, whether driven by a ‘moral’ change in mindset or a genuine interest in understanding the embodied carbon value of their building/structure and seeing how this can be reduced.
So, how can engineers work to reduce the level of embodied carbon in their structures?
