CHALLENGE
Croudace Group sought to better understand and manage the embodied carbon impacts of its residential developments, in line with growing industry and regulatory expectations around sustainability and Net Zero targets. The challenge lay in establishing a consistent method to assess the baseline embodied carbon performance of new homes across a diverse portfolio year on year. This needed to account for multiple typologies, identify meaningful opportunities for carbon reduction, and deliver actionable insights, all while remaining cost-effective and meeting tight project deadlines.
SOLUTION
Savills Earth conducted a detailed embodied carbon assessment of a representative sample of house typologies. The analysis covered all life cycle stages, with a focus on upfront emissions. We reviewed architectural and structural specifications, material quantities, and construction methods to establish a baseline carbon footprint for each typology and then the results were prorated for the baseline year. Alternative scenarios were modelled to explore the impact of design changes and material substitutions, and benchmarked against industry standards such as LETI, RIBA and UK Net Zero Carbon Building Standard.
RESULTS
Croudace Homes now have a clear baseline of their embodied carbon performance across the portfolio, highlighting key contributors and opportunities for reduction. We provided them with a bespoke embodied carbon database, enabling them to independently calculate upfront embodied carbon for future projects. This tool supports annual carbon reporting across the portfolio and empowers the team to make informed design and specification decisions aligned with their Net Zero goals.