The top 50 architecture, engineering, construction (AEC) firms, and other key professionals responsible for well over one trillion dollars of global annual construction have rallied around establishing building sector emissions targets to meet the Paris Agreement. The embodied carbon emissions of construction products represent a significant portion of emissions and unlike operational carbon emissions these emissions are locked in place as soon as a building is built. However, measuring the impacts of buildings, assemblies and products can be complex. Every design decision from product selection to envelope design and construction can have an impact on the environment throughout the project’s service life. Now we have the ability to adopt a holistic life cycle perspective to provide solutions that minimize the carbon impacts while ensuring resilience to natural hazards.
This session will review the growing number of legislation and regulations to reduce carbon emissions of the concrete industry; how the industry demonstrates success through innovative tools and metrics; and how manufacturing methods and research are enhancing concrete products to meet the challenges of climate adaption.