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INSIGHTS SITE LINES
Engineering-out structural emissions early
Jack Brunton and Ioana Price of AECOM explore how designers can redefi ne carbon calculations by assessing carbon at the early design and optioneering stage.
T
he built environment is a signifi cant contributor to the UK’s carbon emission and is responsible for almost 25% of the UK’s total greenhouse gas emissions. Within that footprint, a
signifi cant share lies in embodied carbon – the emissions associated with materials extraction, manufacturing and construction that are locked into a building before it’s ever occupied. It’s no secret that decarbonisation remains at the top of the
sector’s agenda given the critical role we’ll play in helping to achieve the UK’s net zero targets. Progress is being made, but not at the pace we need. Between 2018 and 2022, emissions from the UK built environment fell by 13%. That sounds promising – until you realise we needed a 19% drop in the same period to stay on course for net zero.
That shortfall of 6%, or 11 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent, is
roughly the same as the total annual emissions of 6.5 million cars. We need to innovate our approach if we’re to bridge this gap.
Early-stage optioneering: a different approach Traditionally, structural carbon calculations are carried out at the end of RIBA Stage 2. By this point, the massing is often fi xed, materials are broadly decided on and carbon is something we try to reduce at the margins. That’s not good enough. The decisions that make the biggest impact on carbon – decisions about structural frame typologies, material types, building form and geometry – are made far earlier, typically during RIBA Stages 0 and 1.
At that stage the design is still fl uid. Key decisions about structure, layout, and materials haven’t been locked in yet, so
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there’s still fl exibility to explore low-carbon options without adding time or cost. However, structural engineers are rarely involved in detail at that point, and carbon calculations are often seen as too slow or too expensive to be viable. Fortunately, tools are being developed to make carbon calculations simpler to embed in the earliest stages and avoid costly retrofi ts. For example, at AECOM, we’ve developed
Eco.Zero – the industry’s revolutionary conceptual design tool that allows structural engineers to carry out rapid carbon and cost comparisons for a range of structural frame options, tailored to a project’s specifi c use, geometry and ground conditions. The idea is simple: empower the design team to make informed, low-carbon choices from day one, and do it without adding delay or cost. At its core,
Eco.Zero is a suite of digital tools built to support AECOM’s structural engineers in the earliest stages of design. It was developed in-house by our multidisciplinary team – structural and geotechnical engineers, sustainability specialists and cost managers – to allow for instant optioneering across 11 structural typologies. You can toggle parameters like building height, number of storeys, basement inclusion and structural material to explore how each impacts both embodied carbon and cost.
A tool designed by engineers, for engineers Crucially,
Eco.Zero’s not just a calculator – it’s a design tool. Other tools might offer carbon data, but no others include full foundation design, real cost data and the ability to iterate structural solutions in seconds rather than weeks.
ADF JUNE 2025
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