CUSTOMER STORY

VitalMetrics worked with National Institute of Standards & Technology to develop a Life Cycle Inventory

Background

VitalMetrics worked with NIST to develop a whole-building Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) database by transforming its existing process-based BEES (Building for Environmental and Economic Sustainability) database for building products into a hybrid LCI database.

More recently, VitalMetrics continued its work with NIST further on sustainable buildings and assessed the environmental performance of green building code and certification systems using LCA principles.

 
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Results

The results showed that complying with green building certifications and codes generally reduce life-cycle environmental impacts, while the point-based system employed by LEED® leaves room for a different combination of options, some of which may have a higher impact than non-LEED® compliant buildings (see Figure 1).

The results were published in a leading scientific journal.