Compliance with International Standards
Posted: 11 May 2014 23:11
Hi to everybody to the forum!
Hi to the Moderator!
I’m posting for the first time here and my questions will address the Moderator.
First, a few words for introduction:
I’m working in the building construction field and recently the sustainability features of buildings are my job. These features are being assessed and certified by several world famous methodologies which as a rule include a LCIA (and LCC) analysis in their assessment process. This explains my interest in the openLCA tool which is not only free, but seems to be well designed and elaborated. Really, I liked it.
Secondly, I have already read most of your web site information, downloaded and installed openLCA application v. 1.3.4 with nexus LCIA Methods pack, as well some other free recourses. These days, I’m getting more and more acquainted with the application components, techniques and specifics. They are very well explained and I do hope that sooner or later I’ll reach to the level the application needs, in order to produce professional results. But for now, I came to the following problem:
The sustainable building assessment methodology (in my case it is BREEAM of BRE Global, UK) sets a requirement to the used LCIA tool – the tool must comply with the following standards:
• ISO 14040, ISO 14044
• EN 15978 and EN 15941
So, my questions are:
1. Does openLCA comply as a minimum with the above international standards?
If yes, how can I find evidence confirming the compliance with those standards
(web site publication
or something else)? Please help me to find a solution that will convince BRE Global
Quality Assurance department about their “standards compliance” requirement.
And additionally,
2. Which one of the free LCIA methods/databases listed as free on the download
page http://www.openlca.org/download_page can be recommended for LCIA
assessments of the sustainable buildings domain? I mean:
• EcoSpold01 as zip archive (10 MB) /this is the pack that I’ve installed for now/
• database for openLCA 1.3.4 (olca format file, 19 MB) /this is defined as data
base, I should import (or create?) it as a data base in order to use the methods
with normalisation and weighting factors included in it. Please, excuse my
incompetence; I don’t know what advantages bring both normalisation and
weighting factors. Maybe simplification of the calculations done by openLCA
program?/
• ecoinvent 2.2 Nov. 2010 (ZIP, 3.2 MB).
3. When making a LCIA model of a project, is it possible to combine data from
different databases, i.e. to import processes and flows from different databases
for the purpose of the same project analysis?
Thank you in advance.
Christo P
Hi to the Moderator!
I’m posting for the first time here and my questions will address the Moderator.
First, a few words for introduction:
I’m working in the building construction field and recently the sustainability features of buildings are my job. These features are being assessed and certified by several world famous methodologies which as a rule include a LCIA (and LCC) analysis in their assessment process. This explains my interest in the openLCA tool which is not only free, but seems to be well designed and elaborated. Really, I liked it.
Secondly, I have already read most of your web site information, downloaded and installed openLCA application v. 1.3.4 with nexus LCIA Methods pack, as well some other free recourses. These days, I’m getting more and more acquainted with the application components, techniques and specifics. They are very well explained and I do hope that sooner or later I’ll reach to the level the application needs, in order to produce professional results. But for now, I came to the following problem:
The sustainable building assessment methodology (in my case it is BREEAM of BRE Global, UK) sets a requirement to the used LCIA tool – the tool must comply with the following standards:
• ISO 14040, ISO 14044
• EN 15978 and EN 15941
So, my questions are:
1. Does openLCA comply as a minimum with the above international standards?
If yes, how can I find evidence confirming the compliance with those standards
(web site publication
or something else)? Please help me to find a solution that will convince BRE Global
Quality Assurance department about their “standards compliance” requirement.
And additionally,
2. Which one of the free LCIA methods/databases listed as free on the download
page http://www.openlca.org/download_page can be recommended for LCIA
assessments of the sustainable buildings domain? I mean:
• EcoSpold01 as zip archive (10 MB) /this is the pack that I’ve installed for now/
• database for openLCA 1.3.4 (olca format file, 19 MB) /this is defined as data
base, I should import (or create?) it as a data base in order to use the methods
with normalisation and weighting factors included in it. Please, excuse my
incompetence; I don’t know what advantages bring both normalisation and
weighting factors. Maybe simplification of the calculations done by openLCA
program?/
• ecoinvent 2.2 Nov. 2010 (ZIP, 3.2 MB).
3. When making a LCIA model of a project, is it possible to combine data from
different databases, i.e. to import processes and flows from different databases
for the purpose of the same project analysis?
Thank you in advance.
Christo P