Fraunhofer Institute for Building Physics IBP
Fraunhofer Institute for Building Physics IBP

PACFAST - calculating LCAs for packaging quickly and efficiently

Fast and efficient LCA-calculation of packaging
© Nikita Burdenkov/Shutterstock
PACFAST enables the carbon footprint / LCA of packaging to be calculated efficiently.

Life cycle assessments are generally relatively complex and, depending on the objective and scope of study, call for a high level of expertise. Our collaboration with Institut cyclos-HTP has resulted in an important milestone on the way to calculating the carbon footprint (CF) of packaging quickly and efficiently. The application, called PACFAST (Packaging Carbon Footprint Fast and Standardised), uses an automatically generated file in CHI-RA that contains relevant packaging specifications for calculating the carbon footprint of the packaging in question.

Project goals

The aim of the project was to create an application that enables carbon footprints and other environmental indicators to be determined quickly, efficiently and reliably. The PACFAST application was developed within the scope of the collaboration. It uses a standardized process to generate carbon footprints or other environmental indicators in just a few days. A report and tables of the carbon footprint results provide background information on the methodology. The calculation is carried out in accordance with ISO 14040/14044 and the PEF standard.

Project results

The practical advantage for companies is that PACFAST significantly speeds up the calculation of the environmental profile of all the data required to make an LCA of a packaging product. This makes it ideal for creating environmental assessments for sustainability reporting, for example.

Do you need advice or help in preparing a life cycle assessment for packaging? Please don’t hesitate to contact our experts in the Department of Life Cycle Engineering!

Project partners

  • Institut cyclos-HTP GmbH