The overarching goal of this study is to answer questions related to the costs of implementing a Whole Life Carbon perspective in Germany. It is part of a series: another short study focuses on the cost to build if you need to comply with whole life carbon limit values as well as the costs, availabilities and trends of Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) in the German market.

For the purposes of this study, BPIE and DGNB conducted market research on the “tools of the trade,” i.e., the building blocks needed for consulting on calculating and optimising building life cycle assessments, necessary qualifications, and building life cycle assessment tools. The analysis is based on market research on qualification offerings and life cycle assessment tools, as well as a survey of 62 individuals who offer building life cycle assessments.  

The results can be summarised as follows:  

• Expertise and offerings in the field of building life cycle assessment are constantly growing. It is expected that qualification certificates will become even more important in the future (e.g., for government funding programs).  

• The number of available building life cycle assessment tools is increasing rapidly, which is why quality assurance of the tools is becoming increasingly important.  

• The costs for continuing education and qualifications vary between just under €500 and €1,000. The costs for life cycle assessment tools depend on the business models of the tool providers. Basic versions of the tools range between €700 and €1,800 per user.  

• The survey of 62 building life cycle assessment practitioners reveals a wide range in consulting services and consulting costs for calculating a building life cycle assessment: The median minimum and maximum costs range between €7,000 and €15,000 per calculation. The costs depend heavily on the effort required to acquire the data, but also on the size and type of building, as well as the number of variants to be calculated.  

• The respondents see opportunities for cost reduction in Building Information Modeling (BIM) and digital twins. They also point to potential for standardising and simplifying the building life cycle assessment.  

Based on these findings, the following recommendations are formulated:  

Recommendations for policymakers:  

1. Introduce life cycle regulation early, as this promotes capacity building. Involve market players through participation formats to jointly address the development of the national roadmap (submission to the EU Commission in early 2027).  

2. Learn from other EU countries and jointly advance harmonization, including through delegated legislation.  

3. Use experience from certification to exchange information on the pitfalls and opportunities of auditing a building’s life cycle assessment.  

4. Further expand quality assurance mechanisms, i.e., mandatory training for those responsible for approval, quality-assured life cycle assessment tools, and the establishment of a low-bureaucracy validation process with lean structures and a built-in conformity verification mechanism.  

5. Adjust the requirements for building life cycle assessments between funding, certification, and a future building permit so that duplicate submissions are not necessary.  

6. Enshrine the use of quality-tested tools for building life cycle assessments in government funding programs.  

Recommendations for market actors:  

1. Further expand building life cycle assessment expertise, including by embedding it as standard training in existing qualification programs offered by training providers.  

2. LCA tool providers: ensure quality assurance and ease of use, and reduce the effort required for data acquisition – and thus costs – (e.g., by creating interfaces).  

3. Bring transparency to the services provided by building life cycle assessment consultants by having the architects’ chambers define standard services.  

4. Support the further evaluation of building life cycle assessments, especially by requesting additional information about the building, such as a thorough description of the building’s properties, along with the life cycle assessment results.  

To read the original report in German, click here.