Five ways to cut embodied carbon before construction starts

Roughly half of a building’s lifetime emissions are decided before a single shovel hits the ground. That makes the design phase the best place to act.

Start with the structure

Frames and foundations carry the largest share of embodied carbon. Optimising spans and choosing lower-carbon concrete mixes can cut that figure sharply at almost no extra cost.

The cheapest carbon to remove is the carbon you never design in.

Measure early and often

Run a simple carbon estimate at concept stage and again at detailed design. Teams that track the number tend to improve it.