Towards traceable, auditable, and compliant low-carbon construction in line with forthcoming EU whole life carbon (WLC) reporting mandates.
Abstract
As the construction sector adapts to meet tightening EU sustainability regulations, the ability to measure and manage the embodied carbon of buildings is becoming a critical competence for design and project teams.
With Denmark, Finland and soon, France, leading the way, numeric carbon intensity caps will be the norm across Europe. This article explains how Building Information Modelling (BIM) when combined with GS1 global standards for product and asset identification and traceability, can provide an open, scalable, and standards-driven 'golden thread' of information that supports life cycle assessments (LCAs), international cost management standard (ICMS)-based cost and carbon management, and simplifies environmental, social and governance (ESG) reporting – from design through to site construction and on to operation and repurposing (cradle to cradle).
As the construction industry responds to climate imperatives and new EU regulations, ensuring transparency, traceability, and accountability across the lifecycle of built assets has never been more critical.
By 2030, all EU member states must impose WLC caps on new buildings as part of the forthcoming revision of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD).
Roadmaps to these caps must be published by 2027. Denmark and Finland already apply such caps (eg Denmark’s 12kg CO₂e/m²/year), setting a practical precedent for Ireland and other countries.
Given that materials such as concrete and steel typically account for approximately 38% of the embodied carbon in reinforced concrete structures, traceability is essential.
Concrete alone makes up a sizeable contribution of 24% to the overall carbon footprint of typical high-rise office or residential unit buildings, while rebar contributes roughly 5%.
From cradle-to-cradle: The power of traceability
Traditionally, the carbon impact of construction materials has been assessed from a Cradle-to-Gate perspective. To meet waste-to-landfill targets under the EU Green Deal, the sector must adopt a cradle-to-cradle approach, considering not only manufacture and delivery to site but also operation, reuse, recycling, and end-of-life impacts, such as ensuring the rebar can be reused. To gain credit in the LCA calculations, the concrete also needs to be crushed and used without the fear of contamination.
GS1 standards are already widely used in retail, healthcare, manufacturing and in transport and logistics. GS1 Global Trade Item Numbers (GTINs) and the barcodes and RFID tags in which they are expressed, are already in widespread use in the hardware and DIY sectors. Using them in the wider construction sector will bring unique, open, and interoperable identifiers to the built environment.
Key GS1 identifiers include:
- Global Trade Item Number (GTIN) for all construction products;
- Global Individual Asset Identifier (GIAI) for Core Maintainable Assets (CMAs) as identified in ISO 19650 Asset Information Model (AIM);
- Global Document Type Identifier (GDTI) enables lifecycle tracking of documents and LCA calculation sheets.
When combined with BIM models, these identifiers support robust bottom-up LCAs, which will be critical in demonstrating compliance with waste-to-landfill caps.
Design integration: enabling measurable models
The imposition of carbon intensity caps is already changing design workflows in Denmark and Finland:
BIM models are now developed to LOD 350 or higher, enabling realistic carbon performance calculations. Quantity surveyors and carbon measure engineers utilise BIM and, in some cases, Environmental Product Declarations (EPD) to create bottom-up calculated verifiable LCAs.
This promotes discipline in developing measurable BIM models early, reducing scope creep, cost risk, and programme delays – while achieving improved design outcomes.
These workflows also align naturally with ICMS protocols for integrated cost and carbon management, which depend on traceable, validated data.
Construction integration: Closing the loop
As illustrated below, during construction, GS1 identifiers enable seamless traceability:
- Products such as rebar cages or precast elements will carry serialised GS1 GTIN in QR codes. These can be scanned with a mobile app to discover data and information about the product. The information available can be tailored to the user's trade or profession in their preferred language, leveraging the power of GS1 Digital Link;
- Every scan can create a recorded chain of custody linked to the BIM model and performance specifications;
- Site operatives and client representatives can confirm compliance with the LCA baseline through scan verification.
Such workflows support ESG transparency and compliance with Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), facilitating best practice, as well as meeting national building regulation requirements and audit readiness – all critical in the era of WLC caps.
Conclusion: Engineering the golden thread
BIM and GS1 standards integration are no longer optional for engineering teams serious about delivering evidence based carbon compliance in a cost-effective way for buildings and civil works structures.
As WLC regulation tightens and as numeric caps become the norm, this standards-based Golden Thread will be vital as it enables:
- Open, interoperable and scalable traceability;
- Bottom-up verifiable LCAs;
- Integrated cost and carbon reporting (ICMS).
By embedding this approach into their workflows today, Irish engineers, architects and quantity surveyors can position themselves at the forefront of delivering trusted, sustainable buildings contributing to Europe’s low-carbon future.
For more information, please get in touch with Dan O’Gorman, engagement consultant – construction, GS1 Ireland dan.ogorman@gs1ie.org
