Adapt, demount, reuse and ultimately recycle – steel makes sense. But there is no room for complacency – reduced embodied carbon starts with good design. Overdesign in all its forms – from excessive loading to underutilised members – needs to be challenged and justified. Avoiding excess is an easy win, but there are many more ways to reduce carbon by thoughtful design. Simply specifying steel produced by an electric arc furnace from scrap is a derelict option if the opportunities in design are neglected. EAF steel may make one individual project look comparatively good, but has no benefit for the global problem. Good design with a focus on embodied carbon has the potential to reduce carbon cost – whatever the source of the steel – and should be of prime importance for all designers. Finesse in design may cost more, but is to be balanced by global benefits.
SCI and BCSA are close to completion of a new guide presenting options in design, due for publication early in 2024. The steel industry’s roadmap proposes a 15% reduction in embodied carbon to be realised by better design. The guide presents ways to meet this target by following the hierarchy of build less, build clever, build efficiently and build for future reuse. Each section has a challenging checklist for designers asking questions of the design. If the lower carbon option has not been adopted – then why not? Designers need a justified response if a more carbon intensive solution is proposed.
Plenty of guidance already exists covering a whole range of design solutions – the purpose of this new guide is to assemble the options and challenge structural engineers to recognise embodied carbon as an essential design constraint.
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