This short course takes a hands-on approach to provide delegates with the working understanding and practical knowledge required to apply Life Cycle Assessment methods for the evaluation of whole system Carbon Footprint in real-world case studies and broader impacts to sustainability.

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a well-established, popular and rapidly evolving, method used to systematically evaluate impacts to sustainability associated with a product, process, or service throughout its entire life cycle. Current and emerging policies and legislation are expected to increase the requirements for reporting of industrial emissions towards a Net Zero impacts transition.

Organisations increasingly use LCAs to meet net zero and sustainability goals, and to help grow their businesses sustainably through identification of areas for improvement of efficiencies and environmental performance in complex production & supply chains. LCAs allow organisations to pioneer actions towards achieving global science-based targets for Net Zero impact transitions, thereby enhancing customer acceptability and gaining competitive market advantages.

Through this course, delegates will gain a broad understanding and practical knowledge of the principles and techniques required to develop and apply LCA methods in real-world business scenarios.

 

At a glance

Course structure

This course is delivered over three (3) days involving a series of online and in-person lectures, interactive discussion sessions, and practical applications of LCAs on real-world case studies. The course will also cover ways in which delegates can access industry-led environmental impact assessment reports, and LCA-related data and software available both in the public domain i.e., as open-source and/or commercially available packages.  

What you will learn

This course will allow learners to develop transferable technical skills and knowledge on: 

• Policy and legislation around Net Zero transition and sustainable development: The opportunity to develop an understanding around current and emerging requirements for reporting of industrial Scope 1, 2, and 3 Greenhouse Gas Emissions and other relevant environmental impacts.
• Technical capacity in LCA: The ability to develop a holistic sustainability assessment framework to facilitate evidence-based decision and policy making towards sustainable transition.
• Risk Assessment: The ability to identify potential risk factors to sustainable development from a wide range of sources across complex production & supply chains and understand causal relationships that enable their monitoring, assessment, and mitigation. 
• Data-driven business insights: The ability to generate value and insights for sustainable business development, from diverse sources of data using innovative and integrated approaches, tools & techniques.
• Real-world application: The opportunity to learn through the application of such frameworks in real-world, business relevant case studies, and the critical evaluation of industry-led published LCAs.

Overall, learners should expect to develop key competencies and skills on:

• Life Cycle Thinking; understanding the principles and application of LCA for decision making around sustainable business strategies.
• Environmental Impact Assessment; expanding knowledge on various environmental impact categories and methodologies to assess them.
• LCA Software; getting hands-on experience with Excel-based LCA frameworks and specialised LCA software including SimaPro and OpenLCA.
• Data Analysis, Interpretation, and Communication; ability to collect, analyse, interpret, and present insights from data on environmental performance of a product, service, and system.


Core content

Day 1 (online)

Title: Foundations in Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)

Content on Day 1:

  • When and why should the industry use LCAs?
  • Policies
  • Legislation
  • Reporting requirements for environmental impacts
  • Scope 1, Scope 2, Scope 3 GHG emissions and Carbon Footprint
  • What is LCA and its different forms?
  • Standardisation in LCA
  • Developing an LCA framework | in-class case study (Part 1)
  • Phase 1: Goal & Scope

Competencies covered on Day 1:

Policy and legislation around Net Zero transition and sustainability ; Life Cycle Thinking ; Environmental impact assessment ; Risk assessment ; Real-world applications

Day 2 (on-campus)

Title: Developing an LCA framework (Part 2) | in-class case study

Content on Day 2:

  • Open source and specialised software for LCAs
  • Phase 2: Life Cycle Inventory
  • Impact Allocation methods
  • Phase 3: Impact Assessment methods
  • Phase 4: Interpretation of LCA outputs

Competencies covered on Day 2:

Life Cycle Thinking ; LCA software ; Data analysis, interpretation, and communication ; Data-driven business insights ; Risk assessment ; Real-world applications

Day 3 (on-campus)

Title: Best practices LCAs in industry

Content on Day 3:

  • Challenges in practical applications of LCA
  • How do best practice industry LCAs report critical emissions and impacts across different schemes and policies?

Competencies covered on Day 3:

Life Cycle Thinking ; Data-driven business insights ; Real-world applications.

 

Who should attend

The course is for professionals, academics, students, and policymakers interested in environmental sustainability and how to best integrate holistic sustainability assessment approaches in supply chain managements and product design.

Concessions

20% Cranfield alumni.

10% Early bird booking (by May 2024).

10% On multiple bookings when booking 3 or more delegates at one time.

Accommodation options and prices

This is a non-residential course. If you would like to book accommodation on campus, please contact Mitchell Hall or Cranfield Management Development Centre directly. Further information regarding our accommodation on campus can be .

Alternatively you may wish to make your own arrangements at a nearby hotel.

Location and travel

SWAG合集 is situated in Bedfordshire close to the border with Buckinghamshire. The University is located almost midway between the towns of Bedford and Milton Keynes and is conveniently situated between junctions 13 and 14 of the M1.

London Luton, Stansted and Heathrow airports are 30, 90 and 90 minutes respectively by car, offering superb connections to and from just about anywhere in the world. 

For further location and travel details

Location address

SWAG合集
College Road
Cranfield
Bedford
MK43 0AL

Read our Professional development (CPD) booking conditions.