Environmental Product Declaration
Engineered Cast Steel Products
Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) for Engineered Cast Steel Products, manufactured by Cast Connex Corporation. Declaration SmartEPD-2023-006-0019-01, prepared according to Part B: Designated Steel Construction Products, valid until October 26, 2028.
- Declared unit
- 1 t of product
- Valid until
- October 26, 2028
- PCR
- Part B: Designated Steel Construction Products
Declaration details
- Manufacturer
- Cast Connex Corporation
- Program operator
- Smart EPD
- Declaration number
- SmartEPD-2023-006-0019-01
- Date of issue
- October 26, 2023
- Valid until
- October 26, 2028
- Product category rules (PCR)
- Part B: Designated Steel Construction Products (version 2)
- Standard
- ISO 14025:2006 and ISO 21930:2017
- Declared unit
- 1 t of product
- System boundary
- Cradle to gate (A1 - A3)
- Product specificity
- Product Specific
- Manufacturing specificity
- Manufacturer Average, Facility Specific
- Manufacturing plant
- Electro Aco Altona S.A. (Rua Engenheiro Paul Werner, 925 - Itoupava Seca, Blumenau - State of Santa Catarina, Brazil)
- Product category
- Steel
- Verifier
- Tom Etheridge
- LCA software
- GaBi 10.0
- Program instructions
- Smart EPD General Program Instructions v.1.0, November 2022
Life cycle assessment results
Results per 1 t of product.
Environmental Impact Assessment Results
| Indicator | Unit | A1 | A2 | A3 | A1-A3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GWP-total | kg CO2 eq | 1.69e+2 | 2.11e+0 | 1.21e+3 | 1.38e+3 |
| ODP | kg CFC 11 eq | 1.10e-5 | 1.14e-6 | 1.03e-4 | 1.15e-4 |
| AP | kg SO2 eq | 1.16e+0 | 4.82e-2 | 6.57e+0 | 7.78e+0 |
| EP | kg N eq | 1.76e+0 | 6.40e-3 | 2.85e+0 | 4.62e+0 |
| POCP | kg O3 eq | 1.50e+1 | 1.03e+0 | 6.60e+1 | 8.20e+1 |
| ADP-fossil | MJ | 1.56e+2 | 9.87e+0 | 1.59e+3 | 1.76e+3 |
Resource Use Indicators
| Indicator | Unit | A1 | A2 | A3 | A1-A3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RPRE | MJ | 6.46e+2 | 1.36e+0 | 1.53e+4 | 1.59e+4 |
| RPRM | MJ | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| NRPRE | MJ | 2.97e+3 | 7.64e+1 | 1.65e+4 | 1.95e+4 |
| NRPRM | MJ | 0 | 0 | 6.20e+1 | 6.20e+1 |
| SM | kg | 1.39e+3 | 0 | 0 | 1.39e+3 |
| RSF | MJ | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| NRSF | MJ | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| FW | m3 | 2.83e+0 | 9.08e-3 | 9.21e+1 | 9.49e+1 |
Waste and Output Flow Indicators
| Indicator | Unit | A1 | A2 | A3 | A1-A3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HWD | kg | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| NHWD | kg | 0 | 0 | 3.64e+2 | 3.64e+2 |
| HLRW | kg | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ILLRW | kg | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| CRU | kg | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| MFR | kg | 0 | 0 | 4.53e+2 | 4.53e+2 |
| MER | kg | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| EE | MJ | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
ND = not declared. Life cycle modules: A1-A3 product stage, A4-A5 construction process, B use stage, C end of life, D benefits and loads beyond the system boundary.
Material composition
| Material/Component Category | Origin | % Mass |
|---|---|---|
| Steel | 98 | |
| Alloying Elements | 2 |
| Packaging material | Origin | Mass (kg) |
|---|---|---|
| Wood Pallets | 6 | |
| Plastic Banding | 0.004 | |
| Plastic Bag | 0.5 |
| Biogenic carbon content | kg C per t |
|---|---|
| Biogenic carbon content in product | 0 |
| Biogenic carbon content in accompanying packaging | 0 |
Hazardous substances
No regulated hazardous or dangerous substances are included in this product.
Product description
CAST CONNEX standard and custom steel connectors are used in architectural applications for buildings and bridges to provide structural performance, attractive appearance, and construction economy. CAST CONNEX products are often used for geometrically complex connections, heavily loaded connections, connections with special loading conditions, and applications in which connections are left exposed and appearance is important.
Interpretation
The results of the LCA indicate that the electricity is the largest contributor to the CAST CONNEX product footprint across impact categories. Alloying element use is also a significant contributor. Impacts of the alloying elements used in cast steel produced by CAST CONNEX are driven by silicon feedstocks. The direct emissions of the steelmaking process are small compared to the impact of raw materials and energy use. The steel feedstock is a scrap product so the upstream burden is zero, therefore it does not contribute to the product footprint. Inbound transport of the steel product to the foundry is included and is a small contributor to the product footprint.
The study timeframe is for the year 2021 for Cast Connex manufacturing at Altona in Brazil. This study does not include comparisons or benchmarking. Environmental declarations from different programs based upon different PCRs may not be comparable.
LCIA results are relative expressions and do not predict impacts on category endpoints, the exceeding of thresholds, safety margins or risks. EPDs are comparable only when they follow the same PCR, functional unit and system boundary. The full EPD (PDF) contains the methodology, scenario assumptions and verification statement.