| Concrete associations developing lifecycle assessment for precast |
 Photo courtesy Lafarge Precast concrete troughs await use in a wastewater facility. Institutes in both Canada and the U.S. have partnered to gauge the lifecycle impacts of precast materials. The Canadian Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute (CPCI) is partnering with the United States' Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute (PCI) and National Precast Concrete Association (NPCA) to perform lifecycle assessments (LCAs) of precast components. "With the growing requirements for sustainable design and construction, it is important that the precast, prestressed concrete industry work co-operatively to better understand the environmental impact of precast concrete," said PCI's director of sustainability, Emily Lorenz, PE, LEED AP. "Overall, the objective of this research is to foster a better understanding of the use of precast/prestressed concrete components and, if needed, make modifications to our processes to reduce our environmental impact." The research will be conducted by a joint venture of Morrison Hershfield, Venta Glaser & Associates, and the Merrickville,
Ont.-based Athena Institute. Scheduled to be completed by September, the first
phase assesses the precast concrete from cradle to completion and occupancy of
the structure. This includes impacts from: Phase two, scheduled to start immediately following phase one, will model actual building use. The review group for this LCA initiative includes two authors whose work has appeared in Construction Canada—John R. Fowler, P.Eng., and Brian Hall.
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