Lifecycle Analysis (Lca) : User Guide

LifeCycle Analysis (LCA)
User Guide
IES Virtual Environment
Copyright 2014 Integrated Environmental Solutions Limited. All rights reserved.

No part of the manual is to be copied or reproduced in any form without the express agreement of
Integrated Environmental Solutions Limited.
Contents
1
INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................................................. 2
1.1
LIFE CYCLE ANALYSIS (ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT) ........................................................................................ 2
COST AND VALUE ....................................................................................................................................................... 2

VIRTUAL ENVIRONMENT ............................................................................................................................................ 2
LCA ............................................................................................................................................................................. 2
1.2
LCA MODULE ......................................................................................................................................................... 3
1.2.1
Virtual Environment Menu Bar ................................................................................................................... 3
1.2.2
LCA Menu Bar ............................................................................................................................................. 3
1.2.3
LCA Toolbar................................................................................................................................................. 3
1.2.4
Model Workspace ....................................................................................................................................... 5
1.2.5
Project bar .................................................................................................................................................. 6
1.2.6
Project settings tab ..................................................................................................................................... 8
1.2.7
Life cycle analysis tab ............................................................................................................................... 11
1.2.8
LCA Full Data views ................................................................................................................................... 19
1.2.9
Charts ....................................................................................................................................................... 21
1.3
CDB INTERFACE .................................................................................................................................................... 24
1.3.1
CDB ........................................................................................................................................................... 24
1.3.2
LCA CDB fields ........................................................................................................................................... 25
1.3.3
LCA construction setup ............................................................................................................................. 27
1.3.4
Available construction datasets................................................................................................................ 28
1.3.5
IMPACT LCC and LCA Service Lives for user guidance ............................................................................... 41
1.4
MIXED USE BUILDINGS ............................................................................................................................................ 42
VE2014
Introduction
1.1 Life Cycle Analysis (Environmental Impact Assessment)

LCA (Life Cycle Analysis) is a tool within the Virtual Environment to allow users to evaluate the
environmental impact of the model constructions.
Several detailed datasets describing the environmental properties of constructions and materials
provided by BRE are utilised to provide detailed output. The outputs allow the user to make key
material or construction decisions and tradeoffs from early conceptual design right through to
detailed design stages.
Virtual Environment
Cost and Value
LCA
VE2014
1.2 LCA Module

To launch the LCA tool choose LCA (Environmental Impact Assessment) from the Applications tab in
the main VE. You must have the appropriate licence key to launch LCA.
1.2.1 Virtual Environment Menu Bar
These menus provide functions used throughout the Virtual Environment. Please refer to the Virtual
Environment User Guide for further information.
1.2.2 LCA Menu Bar
This pull-down menu provide functions specific to the LCA view.
1.2.3 LCA Toolbar
The toolbars provide quick access to functions to manipulate the user interface and provide results.
1.2.3.1
Create a new file
Create a new blank or copy existing template for this LCA project. It is recommended that a user chooses an
existing template.
1.2.3.2
Open an existing file
Open an existing lca file to use in this project. Please note you must open an LCA project from the current
project location.
Example: note current project path is in a different location from the current project:
VE2014
Once opened use File -> Save As to prevent overwriting original lca file:
1.2.3.3
Save current file
Save lca file to current location (Use LCA->Save As to save to an alternate location or an alternative lca file).
Note if you save the lca file to an alternative location the LCA module will not automatically load the
project on entry to the LCA module. While launching the LCA module the model project folder will be
searched and the most recently modified file will be loaded into view.
1.2.3.4
Full data view
The full data view provides seven additional detailed reports level of display outputs. These reports can be
copied to an alternative package such as a spreadsheet tool for further analysis.
1.2.3.5
View charts
Six detailed charts reports are available to copy to external applications.
1.2.3.6
Model measures
This provides a summary of model information.
1.2.3.7
Apache construction database manager
Open apache CDB to allow adjusting of construction or material data within the model. All changes will be
reflected in the LCA calculations.
VE2014
1.2.4 Model Workspace

The model workspace displays the model allowing the user to select rooms to set properties such as
room name and LCA room type (Mixed building mode only)
VE2014
1.2.5 Project bar

The project bar provides the main interface to manipulate the LCA calculations for analysis.
New models with no lca project located in the project folder will display a blank project as follows:
To create a new LCA project use the

toolbar button and select either blank or
IMPACT_BREEAM_Materials_template_v1.lca (recommended) then OK.
Save it and the following will be displayed:
VE2014
If an existing project has been loaded successfully the LCA main analysis view will be displayed:
VE2014
1.2.6 Project settings tab

The project settings tab contains the following information:
Project name: Non editable field displaying the currently loaded lca file title.
Location: The current location of the model. Currently, due to specific nature of the dataset, the LCA
calculations are limited to the UK only. If using outside of the UK users must accept or account for
this when using the calculated values.
Study period years: Determines the length of time of analysis from 0 to 80 years to take the in use
stage of a buildings life into account. For example, study period and the service life (years) variable
given for each layer within constructions together account for refurbishment impacts. Another
important function of the study period is to act as a multiplier for the annual operational energy and
water quantities generated by Apache.
PLEASE NOTE: If the model contains any IMPACT Specifications (which are pre-calculated for a 60
year study period) the study period value must be set to 60 years to ensure parity between IMPACT
specifications and layer-based specifications.
Functional Unit: Output metrics can be the total (for the entire model) or the total divided by a
functional unit. For example in the main Life Cycle Analysis tab the columns labeled Ecopoints/FU and
kgCO2/FU contain the raw values divided by the functional unit. In the full data view the user can
choose to display total or per functional unit (BRE (Ecopoint, UK), BRE (Characterised, UK), BS EN
15643-2:2-11 & BS EN 15978:2011 and Carbon footprint modes only).
The ability to express the impact of the building using a functional unit means that buildings of the
same type can be compared more fairly irrespective of size. For example, if the functional unit NIA
(Net Internal Area) is used, an office building of 1000sq.m can be compared to another office building
of 10,000sq.m.
Auto used for benchmarking in mixed use mode only:
- Offices = NIA
- Residential = no. bedrooms
- Education (schools) = no.pupils (design max)
- Industrial = NIA
User entered:
User may enter a numerical value in the edit box
VE2014
GIFA:
Gross internal floor area
NIA:
Net internal floor area only differs from GIFA if inner volume modeling is turned on.
NIA is GIFA or GIA (floor area within internal face of external walls) less the following (refer to
RICS measuring practice p16):
1 Common (circulation / halls / entrances / atria / toilets / cleaners / stairs)
2 Plant rooms, lift rooms, lift shafts
3 Areas with < 1.5m headroom
4 Riser and small void spaces
5 Vehicle parking areas
6 Internal walls, columns
All the categories of spaces are recognized by the software through NIA room groups except for
columns where should be set up on the non-thermal dialog through the LCA module. You need
to set up room group schema NIA with the following groups: "Included", and optionally
Excluded. Only rooms in the group Included in NIA are included in the floor area count.
However, if a room group NIA is not available then all rooms are included in the NIA group. You
need also to turn on the inner volumes which will count for internal wall area.
Occupant No:
People count extracted from internal gains entered in the room assignment dialog in Apache
module.
Operational Impacts: Opens the operational impacts dialog this allows the user to use an alternative
fuel record when calculating impacts. The default values should not be altered unless the user is
certain of the consequences of the adjustment.
The following IDs apply to the current settings:
578
581
583
585
587
588
591
592
593
Construction installations (quantity is NIA net internal

area)
Biogas (UK), energy supplied,
Grid electricity (UK), energy supplied,
Hard coal briquette (UK), energy supplied,
Light fuel oil (UK), energy supplied,
LPG (UK), energy supplied,
Mixed logs (UK), energy supplied,
UK tap water (UK),
Natural gas (UK), energy supplied,
Non Thermal: opens the Non thermal objects dialog allowing the user to enter details of additional
LCA items which are not modeled with geometry in the VE. Items such as Gutters, Beams, Columns,
Foundations can be entered here:
VE2014
Add takes a copy of the current row and adds a new one beneath.
Remove removes row
Drop list allows assignment to the mixed building list (see mixed build use section)
The non-thermal dialog will be used when analyzing the following element codes:
131 Gutter
133 Beams
135 Column
137 Lintol
139 Stairs
30 Foundation
27 Fixed shade
129 Hard landscaping
143 Other (used as a miscellaneous can assign to any of the construction types it is
recommended when using this code to maintain construction descriptions for clarity)
VE2014
10
1.2.7 Life cycle analysis tab

The lifecycle analysis tab will not be available in a newly created project. To add a new lifecycle tab
right click the bar to the right side of the last tab then select Add:
Additional Life cycle analysis tabs may be added using the above method. Additional tabs may be
utilised to groups sections of the building e.g. to examine external walls vs internal walls impact.
If you are not using the mixed building mode (LCA room properties set) a new tab will be
automatically inserted with each Add menu selection.
In mixed building mode a list will be displayed of all the building types within the model.
The Life cycle analysis tab is split into 2 sections; category and elements.
The category section is typically used to group multiple related elements and present summary totals
of each grouping. The example below has a Superstructure category highlighted which will report the
sum of ecopoints and CO2 of the corresponding elements displayed on the right hand pane.
Superstructure would typically contain the majority of elements such as the windows, doors, walls of a
model. Selecting a category row will alter the element view to display all the elements contained
within the selected category grouping. The built-in categorisation system is based on NRM (New Rules
of Measurement) by RICs as future datasets are incorporated into the VE this categorization
system may be expanded.
VE2014
11
1.2.7.1
Categories toolbar
The categories section toolbar is located beneath the category grid:
Add New category
- add a new category to the end of the list
Remove category
- delete currently selected category (warning will appear prior to delete)
Cut category
- delete currently selected category and place details on clipboard (warning will
appear prior to delete)
Insert category
Copy category
- insert New category above currently selected category

- copy currently selected category to clipboard
Paste category
- paste category on clipboard over the currently selected category. Warning this
will replace the currently selected category.
Move category up
Move category down
1.2.7.2
- move currently selected category up by one row

- move currently selected category down by one row
Categories grid columns
ID: The 1st category code field. User editable field

Right click within the red perimeter to display the coding scheme reference:
Coding scheme reference dialog:

VE2014
12
The coding schema reference dialog is a convenient helper to allow simple population of the category
fields with NRM approved codes.
Category: User editable field allows user to describe category for convenience.
Ecopts: Ecopoints total for this category (or total if last row)
Ecopts/FU: Ecopoints per funcitonal unit (based on user selection in Project Settings tab)
kgCO2: kgs of Carbon for category (or total for whole tab if last row)
kgCO2/FU: kgs of Carbon per funcitonal unit (based on user selection in Project Settings tab)
Right click within the red perimeter to display the context menu:
Context menu:
VE2014
13
Operations are similar to the category toolbar described above.

Cut - delete currently selected category and place details on clipboard (warning will appear prior to
delete)
Copy - copy currently selected category to the LCA clipboard. This will also copy the all categories and
elements to the clipboard to the windows clipboard to enable user to paste to excel.
Paste - paste category on clipboard over the currently selected category. Warning this will replace the
currently selected category.
Paste as new category - paste category on clipboard beneath currently selected category
Add - add a new category to the end of the list
Insert - insert new category above currently selected category
Remove - delete currently selected category (warning will appear prior to delete)
Move up- move currently selected category up by one row
Move down - move currently selected category down by one row
1.2.7.3
Elements
The elements section tolbar is located beneath the element grid:
Add New element
- add a new element to the end of the list
Remove element
- delete currently selected element (warning will appear prior to delete)
VE2014
14
Cut element
- delete currently selected element and place details on clipboard (warning will
appear prior to delete)
Insert element
Copy element
- insert New category above currently selected element

- copy currently selected element to clipboard
Paste element
- paste element on clipboard over the currently selected element. Warning this
will replace the currently selected element.
Move element up
Move element down
1.2.7.4
- move currently selected element up by one row

- move currently selected element down by one row
Element grid columns
ID2: The 2nd level category code field. User editable field
Right click within the red perimeter to display the coding scheme reference.
Coding scheme reference dialog:
VE2014
15
This is a convenience dialog to help the user populate ID and element fields with NRM based codes.
ID3: The 3rd level category code field. User editable field. See notes for ID2 above
Element: User editable field allows user to describe element for convenience.
Code: Element code numertical descriptor of element code. Element codes can be thoguht of as user
controlled instructions or macros for LCA calculations. Depending on the code selected will determine
the calulation performed. For example code 124 = External Wall construction by CDB item instrucs
LCA to process all external walls and calculate the relevant Product, Constriuction, Use and End of Life
values for all external walls. Each construciton will be displayed in a separate row on the output with
the construciton ID label and description:
Open CDB to view the construciton in use:
VE2014
16
To open the element code dialog double click the code cells:
Element codes are as follows:

Code
27 Fixed shade by CDB item
30 Foundation by CDB item
120 Ground floor by CDB item
121 Upper floor by CDB item
122 Roof by CDB item
123 Roof light by CDB item
124 External wall by CDB item
125 Internal wall by CDB item
126 External Window by CDB item
127 Internal Window by CDB item
128 Door by CDB item
129 Hard Landscape by CDB item
131 Gutter by CDB item
133 Beam by CDB item
135 Column by CDB item
137 Lintol by CDB item
139 Stairs by CDB item
140 Window perimeter by CDB item
141 Door perimeter by CDB item
142 Construction installations
143 Other
182 Primary energy elec
183 Primary energy gas
184 Primary energy LPG
185 Primary energy oil
186 Primary energy coal
VE2014
Editable via
Non thermal dialog
Non thermal dialog
Automatic from VE construction assigned via CDB
Non thermal dialog
Non thermal dialog
Non thermal dialog
Non thermal dialog
Non thermal dialog
Non thermal dialog
Automatic from VE construction frame setting assigned via CDB
Automatic from VE construction frame setting assigned via CDB
NIA use with LCA code in project level impacts dialog
Non thermal dialog
Electricity use via apache sim or manual entry in quantity edit field LCA code in project level impacts dialog is applied to this measure
Gas use via apache sim or manual entry in quantity edit field - LCA
code in project level impacts dialog is applied to this measure
LPG use via apache sim or manual entry in quantity edit field - LCA
Oil use via apache sim or manual entry in quantity edit field - LCA
Coal use via apache sim or manual entry in quantity edit field - LCA
17
187 Primary energy biomass

188 Primary energy biogas
192 Occupant no. (max)
Biomass use via apache sim or manual entry in quantity edit field LCA code in project level impacts dialog is applied to this measure
Biogas use via apache sim or manual entry in quantity edit field LCA code in project level impacts dialog is applied to this measure
Manual entry of m3 per person in quantity edit field, this value
multiplied by people in building will be used for calculation - LCA
Quant: Quantity this field contains the area / energy / other value used within the LCA calculation.
Units: contains the units of the quantity value.
Product (A1-3): Environmental impacts from the Product life stage in BRE Ecopoints
Constrn (A4-5): Environmental impacts from the Cosntruction life stage in BRE Ecopoints.
Use (B1-7): Environmental impacts from the Use life stage in BRE Ecopoints.
EoL (C1-4): Environmental impacts from the End of life stage in BRE Ecopoints.
Ecopts: BRE Ecopoints total.
kgCO2: Kilogrammes of CO2 equivelant (100yrs).
Right click within the red perimeter to display the context menu.
Context menu:
Operations are similar to the element toolbar described above.

Cut - delete currently selected element and place details on clipboard (warning will appear prior to
cut)
Copy - copy currently selected element to the LCA clipboard. This will also copy the all categories and
elements to the clipboard to the windows clipboard to enable user to paste to excel.
Paste - paste element on clipboard over the currently selected element. Warning this will replace the
currently selected element.
VE2014
18
Paste as new category - paste element on clipboard beneith currently selected element
Add - add a new element to the end of the list
Insert - insert new element above currently selected element
Remove - delete currently selected element (warning will appear prior to delete)
Move up- move currently selected element up by one row
Move down - move currently selected element down by one row
1.2.8 LCA Full Data views

Press
on the toolbar to launch the full data view dialog:
Notes:
-
A Life Cycle Analysis tab must be selected prior to launching the full data view as the full data view
is a detailed representation of the currently selected Life Cycle analysis tab.
All result outputs are rounded to two significant figures and adjust to scientific notation for very
large/small values.
There are seven detailed views available from the drop down in the LCA tool:
BRE Life stage totals (Ecopoint, UK) Values are normalized and weighted according to the BRE Ecopoint
Method, per life-stage, per element/construction.
VE2014
19
BRE Issue totals (Characterised, UK) Values are characterised environmental impacts in the following
units, per element/construction:
1 Global warming potential
kg CO2 eq (100 yr)
2 Water Extraction
m3 water extracted (gross)
3 Mineral Resource Extraction
tonne of minerals extracted
4 Depletion potential of the stratospheric ozone layer
kg CFC-11
5 Human Toxicity
kg 1,4 dichloro-benzene (1,4-DB) eq
6 Ecotoxicity to freshwater
kg 1,4 dichlorobenzene (1,4-DB)eq
7 Nuclear Waste (higher level)
mm3 high level waste
8 Ecotoxicity to Land
kg 1,4 dichlorobenzene (1,4-DB) eq
9 Waste Disposal
tonne solid waste
10 Fossil Fuel Depletion
MJ
11 Eutrophication potential
kg phosphate (PO4) eq
Formation potential of tropospheric ozone
12 photochemical oxidants
kg ethene (C2H4) eq
13 Acidification potential of land and water sources
kg sulfur dioxide (SO2) eq
BS EN 15643-2 2011& BS EN 15978: 2011 Issues totals - Values are characterised environmental Impacts in
the following units, compatible with the listed CEN standards:
1 Global warming potential
4 Depletion potential of the stratospheric ozone layer
11 Eutrophication potential
Formation potential of tropospheric ozone
12 photochemical oxidants
13 Acidification potential of land and water sources
kg CO2 eq (100 yr)

kg CFC-11
kg phosphate (PO4) eq
kg ethene (C2H4) eq
kg sulfur dioxide (SO2) eq
BRE (Ecopoint, UK) - tabular view of Life-stages (columns) vs Environmental impact(rows). Values are
normalized and weighted according to the BRE Ecopoint method and are totals (not per
element/construction). Rounded to two significant figures and adjust to scientific notation for very
large/small values.
BRE (Characterised, UK) - tabular view of Life stage (columns) vs Environmental Impact (rows). Values are
characterised environmental Impacts for units 1 to 13 and are totals (not per element/construction).
Rounded to two significant figures and adjust to scientific notation for very large/small values.
BS EN 15643-2:2-11 & BS EN 15978:2011 - tabular view of Life stage (columns) vs Environmental Impact
(rows). Values are characterised environmental Impacts for units 1, 4, 11, 12 and 13 (according to the listed
CEN standards) and are totals (not per element/construction). Rounded to two significant figures and
adjust to scientific notation for very large/small values.
Carbon footprint - tabular view of Life stage (columns) vs Environmental Impact (rows). Values are Global
warming potential (kg CO2 eq (100 yr)). Rounded to two significant figures and adjust to scientific notation
for very large/small values.
Notes:
-
VE2014
all tables can be copied for further processing using the
button at the top left of dialog.
20
Output per functional unit (using the highlighted drop down) is selectable in BRE (Ecopoint, UK),
BRE (Characterised, UK), BS EN 15643-2:2-11 & BS EN 15978:2011 and Carbon footprint reports.
MNA in output indicates Measurement Not Assessed.
N/A (module D) indicates that the method used does not utilize module D.
1.2.9 Charts
Press
on the toolbar to launch the chart dialog:
The following charts are available in the chart dialog:

Environmental Impact (BRE Ecopoints (UK)) per life-stage, per issue
VE2014
21
Environmental Impact (BRE Ecopoints (UK)) per life-stage
Environmental Impact (BRE Ecopoints (UK)) per life-stage, per issue
VE2014
22
Environmental Impact (BRE Ecopoints (UK)) per issue
Carbon footprint (Kg CO2 eq. (100yr)) per life-stage
VE2014
23
Carbon footprint (Kg CO2 eq. (100yr)) per life-stage
1.3 CDB Interface

To follow will describe the central role CDB plays within the LCA module. Details of what areas affect
the LCA module will be highlighted. To gain further insight into the CDB tool please refer to the
relevant documentation.
1.3.1 CDB
Click on the cdb button
VE2014
within the LCA module to launch the CDB dialog:
24
1.3.2 LCA CDB fields

To follow is a summary of which CDB fields are relevant to the LCA calculation module.
Select the Costs/LCA tab in the CDB module and scroll to the right of the table to reveal the
highlighted columns (all non-editable). Note you can right click table heading and manage columns
to add or remove unwanted columns.
BRE Eco-points/m2: details the ecopoints per m2 of this construction currently not used.
BRE Component number: for Spec data only unique id tied to this construction for LCA calculation
purposes.
BRE Green guide rating: for Spec data only the BRE green guide rating for this construction.
BRE Classification: Generic or certified generic is a BRE generic construction, certified is generally a
specific construction (see description of construction for more details)
VE2014
25
The project materials (accessed via button on editing a particular construction) dialog contains
additional relevant fields for LCA.
Select Show all opaque and LCA/LCC only from the highlighted combo items:
Service life (years): How often material is replaced this coupled with the period of study will adjust
LCA calculations. A more frequent service life will generally increase the LCA outputs.
Site wastage %: How much wastage is produced when installing. Again if this is increased then so will
the LCA outputs.
Adjust factor %: to account for instances where adjustment is required e.g. overlapping roof slates.
BRE material #: read only unique BRE id used when calculating the LCA.
BRE Category 1 ID: read only used when constructing composite constructions see later section for
details.
BRE Category 2 ID: read only used when constructing composite constructions see later section for
details.
Last edited: date when this material was last edited.
Quantity method: currently area and length quantity methods are utilised in CDB materials.
Overall mass kg/m: for window and door perimeter calculations (quantity method length) gives the
kg/m value of the material.
Generic / certified: Generic or certified generic is a BRE generic construction, certified is generally a
specific construction (see description of construction for more details)
Lifecycle stage A4 Transport distance factory to site:
Transport distances may be changed to reflect the actual distance. For all proprietary products and
generic products where the source location is known (e.g. a specific type of natural stone), It is good
practice to either enter actual transport distances OR remain with the generic distances throughout.
For products originating from a factory in the UK, enter a total distance from Factory gate to site.
VE2014
26
For products originating from a factory abroad (only distributed in the UK), enter a total transport
distance from the UK port of arrival to the site. The International transport impacts are based on
generic fixed rates per product/material type and cannot be changed.
1.3.3 LCA construction setup

Several datasets have been imported to include LCA information these datasets are accessed
through the CDB interface via the view menu:
VE2014
27
1.3.4 Available construction datasets

Two distinct types of datasets are available for LCA modeling; layer based and construction based. If a
user wants to create a detailed construction made of multiple layers (materials, products etc.) they
can use the CMP datasets. If the user wants to use pre-defined constructions they should use the SPEC
datasets. A new LCA user would perhaps use the SPEC datasets then, once comfortable, move to the
more advanced material based approach. Similarly, at the beginning of a project when evaluating
building shape and broad construction types, the SPEC approach will be more time efficient and
requires less detail. Later in the project, as more detail is developed, the user may progressively
replace Spec based constructions with building-specific layer specifications to increase accuracy of
LCA results and reduce impacts still further.
CMP_Dataset_VX this is a layer-level (material, products etc.) based set which allows the users to
create constructions layered with multiple materials before assigning to the model.
All Spec_Dataset_vX (except floor finishes and suspended ceilings) these are element-level
(complete elemental constructions/specifications) based sets which allow the users to assign pre
made constructions directly with pre-calculated LCA information attached.
Spec Floor finishes / suspended ceilings as the VE does not have the facility to add multiple
constructions to a surface Spec based floor finishes and suspended ceilings must be added as a
material layer to the overall Spec construction.
Please note for LCA calculations the thickness, conductivity, density, SHP, Resistance value of the Spec
dataset is auto generated to maintain the target u value assigned by the BRE. Adjustment of the
thickness value will not alter the LCA calculations (as is the case with CMP generated constructions).
Model construction setup and assignment
It is recommended that the initial model setup is performed using the apache module
Apache toolbar:
To setup the model for LCA calculations the assign construction

features will be utilized.
and construction database
The general method to setup the model will be:

1. Setup constructions using the constructions database
2. Assign the newly created constructions to the current model using assign constructions
3. Switch to the LCA module to query the calculations
VE2014
28
1.3.4.1
Spec construction setup

1. Select one of the Spec datasets from the view menu:
VE2014
2.
Selecting one of the red highlighted region will display the following dialog:
3.
Choose one of the constructions and right click and copy construction(s) to project:
29
VE2014
4.
Construction will appear in the Project constructions list:
5.
Press OK then use Assign construction to assign this to the current model:
30
6.
Switch to the LCA module create project as described above and choose element code 124 to
produce LCA output:
Please note that each construction in the dataset will be assigned a dummy material, which has been
classified into the Unkown material category.
1.3.4.2
Spec floor finish/suspended ceiling setup

Open the floor finishes materials dialog:
Change filters:
VE2014
31
Right click a suitable material and copy:
Edit ground floor or floor / ceiling construction and add layer into layers:
VE2014
32
1.3.4.3
CMP construction setup (advanced)
CMP construction is an advanced feature to allow users to build constructions from layer-level
database of products and materials. Please consult the Constructions Database help for additional
details regarding BRE materials.
1. Switch to Apache module then select construction database
from toolbar:
2. Click on the Add new construction link (a new construction will appear)
VE2014
33
3. Open the CMP materials data set from menu:
This will display the library of materials available:
VE2014
34
4. Double click the original construction added in step 2 to display the layers dialog:
5. Choose material from Library materials dialog and right click and copy material:
6. On the original Project construction choose Add (or paste)

7. Assign construction to model
8. Switch to LCA view and view results
Once initial model constructions are assigned users may then use the cdb button within the LCA module to
alter constructions.
VE2014
35
1.3.4.4
Composite layers
See CDB documentation section on BRE composite layer validation. A full detailed list of the composite
layer and associated composite layer requirements can be found in the CMP_Dataset_LayerDetails.pdf
located in the C:\Program Files (x86)\IES\<VE Folder>\apps\Help\LCA folder.
NOTES:
Currently CDB will allow 1 composite layer per construction.
In the event the user wishes to add composite layers will required to be input as separate layers.
Please ensure thicknesses are equivalent and the adjustments % values of the layers are correct
(normally add up to 100%) - in these cases.
If composite layer does not contain a total of 100 % composite (e.g. stud walls) an additional air co
layer can be added with the appropriate properties in place:
Example to determine co layer dependency:

Curtain wall system requires Co layer L381(BRE1) the corresponding co layer required is the Curtain wall
system (fixing bracket), steel (galvanized) which is ID 169 shown below. This means both of these layers
must exist in a composite layer to be a valid LCA material.
VE2014
36
In the VE the following method will result in a valid composite layer:

1. Ensure composite layers are enabled:
2. Edit construction and press Composite button a composite layer will replace the currently
selected layer:
VE2014
37
3. Right click a layer and choose the following menu item:
4. Select Show all opaque constructions from the material category menu item:
VE2014
38
5. Click on Description column header to sort the material descriptions and find the curtain call
system then select OK:
VE2014
39
6. Repeat using the method above for the Curtain wall system (fixing bracket), steel (galvanized)
layer.
7. When pressing Ok you will be given an adjustment warning a requirement from the BRE is that all
composite layer adjustments must add up to 100%. To adjust these open the project materials
dialog and alter the adjustment values for each material or enter text describing why you want to
override. In this example there is no need to ensure adjustments add up to 100% as they are not
continuous materials and may be hollow sections.
NOTE: When creating composite layers within a construction type; it is advised to create the material
make-up as you would normally without any composite layers first.
Create materials as per your wall specification, firstly without

adding the composite layers.
Click:
View>Library>IMPACT>IMPACT_CMP_Dataset_V18_materials
(for example) and add the relevant material types.
Once the materials are added, it is recommended at this stage to add composite layers this will
reduce the number of warnings messages reported. If we click the OK button, a dialog will pop-up
displaying which materials have to be included as a composite layer. In this case Block concrete
(dense) must be within a composite layer. We then can check the CMP_Dataset_LayerDetail.pdf
document to see which CoLayer we need to add. In this case we need to add L64 and L64(BRE1) which
is mortar.
We then select the material which we want to make a composite layer and click the composite button
which adds the composite layer with sub layers. If we right click> Make Real material>Library Materials
we can then add the composite layers.
VE2014
40
1.3.5 IMPACT LCC and LCA Service Lives for user guidance
Both the LCC and LCA data sets include service life data. For IMPACT library data these have been
aligned with each other. However, there are some differences between the two datasets which
should be noted, in particular if user-entered specifications are included, or default values are
changed.
Note that certain finishes (e.g. floor coverings) will have a different reference service life depending
on the building function selected. This reflects either different use conditions (for example wear and
tear in communal corridors in heavily trafficked buildings) or different expectations for replacement
cycles to reflect economic or aesthetic performance requirements (e.g. need to regularly refresh
large retail facilities).
The LCC reference service life data covers replacement cycles. There are also maintenance cycles for
the various repair and maintenance activities (major, minor, reactive, decoration and cleaning). Note
that the amount of repair or maintenance assumed influences the replacement service life cycle if
more maintenance is provided to maintainable items generally replacement will be later, and vice
versa.
The LCA reference service life data in the CMP dataset is for replacement cycles also. Although the
tool has provision for individual repair or maintain cycles, these have not been used in the library data
provided in Phase 1 of IMPACT. Also note that the LCA replacement cycles are for individual layers or
materials, whereas these may form repair activities in the LCC dataset. For example, replace a
plasterboard layer to a partition is a repair activity in LCC whereas it is a replacement activity in LCA.
If users provide their own service life data, or if they edit library service life they should note the
following:
It will be necessary to separately enter new (user defined) specifications in each dataset.
It will be necessary to manually align the LCA and LCC datasets for replacement service lives. This may
entail editing maintenance cycles in LCC where partial replacements occur of specific layers or
materials.
If replacement service life data is edited or provided, the default LCC maintenance cycles should be
checked and edited as required to align with the assumptions made for the replacement service life
cycle.
VE2014
41
1.4 Mixed use buildings

Mixed use buildings allow splitting the VE model rooms into individual building types for example an
Education model could contain some office spaces and you may want to analyze the environmental
impact of the model constructions of each building type separately. Using the mixed building feature
supports this scenario.
Mixed use buildings are also required when benchmarking of LCA data becomes available. Currently
there is no benchmarking information available for any of the four supported building types. Note the
current building type has no mapping between the NCM building types available in the Part L
compliance module.
Mixed use buildings are restricted to Residential, Office, Industrial and Education via the properties
dialog within the room tree browser. Right click a room in the browser then select properties:
Once you have set your rooms to one of the four types of building you may add additional LCA tabs via
the add option by right clicking and selecting Add:
This will display an Add LCA Tab dialog:
The blank row represents all rooms that have not been assigned any building type.
VE2014
42

Lifecycle Analysis (Lca) : User Guide

Transféré par

Informations du document

Titre original

Copyright

Formats disponibles

Partager ce document

Partager ou intégrer le document

Options de partage

Avez-vous trouvé ce document utile ?

Ce contenu est-il inapproprié ?

Droits d'auteur :

Formats disponibles

Lifecycle Analysis (Lca) : User Guide

Transféré par

Droits d'auteur :

Formats disponibles

LifeCycle Analysis (LCA)

Copyright 2014 Integrated Environmental Solutions Limited. All rights reserved.

LIFE CYCLE ANALYSIS (ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT) ........................................................................................ 2

COST AND VALUE ....................................................................................................................................................... 2