Life-Cycle Assessment

This service evaluates the environmental impact of a product or service throughout its entire lifecycle, from production to disposal. Through Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), it provides detailed insights into resource use, emissions, and potential environmental effects at each stage. This aids in the development of more sustainable practices and products, helping organisations minimise their environmental footprint and improve overall sustainability.

Brief about Life cycle assessment

LCA is a comprehensive approach that helps organisations understand the full environmental implications of their products and services, enabling them to make more informed and sustainable choices. It is a method used to evaluate the environmental impacts associated with all stages of a product's life, from raw material extraction through materials processing, manufacturing, distribution, use, and disposal or recycling. The goal of LCA is to assess the overall environmental performance of a product or service, identifying areas for improvement and supporting decision-making for sustainable practices.

At OffsetGo, we leverage expert knowledge to provide a comprehensive environmental map of the enterprise. Our protocols adhere to international standards, offering a competitive advantage to our clients. Our LCA method is certified by ISO 14044:2006 and ISO 14040:2006, underscoring our commitment to high-quality standards.

Our well-defined LCA method encompasses four major steps:

1 Goal and Scope Definition:

This initial stage involves clearly outlining the goals and scope of the LCA study. It includes defining the purpose of the assessment, specifying the intended applications of the results, and setting the system boundaries (e.g., cradle-to-grave, cradle-to-gate) that will govern the processes and impacts included in the assessment.

2 Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) Analysis:

It comprises of two steps:

Data Collection: At this stage, comprehensive data on all inputs (materials, energy) and outputs (emissions, waste) associated with each stage of the product's life cycle are collected. This involves identifying and quantifying the resources used and the environmental releases throughout the life cycle.
Classification: The collected data is categorized and organized according to established guidelines and protocols (e.g., ISO standards) to ensure consistency and comparability across different LCAs.

3 Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA):

Classification: During this phase, Inventory data is assigned to relevant environmental impact categories, such as global warming potential, acidification potential, eutrophication potential, etc.

Characterization: Characterization involves quantifying the potential environmental impacts identified in the inventory analysis. Each impact category, such as global warming, ozone depletion, or acidification, is assessed using specific category indicators. This step provides a detailed understanding of the extent and significance of the environmental impacts associated with the product or process.

Normalization: Normalization involves scaling the quantified environmental impacts relative to a set of reference values, such as regional or global averages. This process helps contextualize the results by comparing them to a baseline, making it easier to understand the relative significance of each impact. With this, impacts across different categories and studies can be more effectively compared, thereby facilitating more informed decision-making.This step enhances the clarity and relevance of the LCA findings, highlighting the most critical areas for environmental improvement.

Weighting: At this stage, weight is applied to impact categories based on stakeholders' or decision-makers' preferences to prioritize certain environmental impacts over others. This allows for tailored assessments that align with specific environmental priorities and organizational goals.

4 Interpretation:

Results Interpretation: In the final stage, the results of the LCA are analyzed and interpreted to draw conclusions about the environmental performance of the product or process. A verification process is conducted to ensure that the results align with the objectives and scope of the study.

Sensitivity Analysis: Assessments are made to determine the robustness of the results, taking into account uncertainties in data and assumptions used in the LCA.

Improvement Recommendations: Based on the findings, recommendations are made for improving the environmental performance of the product or process, guiding decision-making towards more sustainable practices.