The Construction Industry Council (CIC) appointed Cundall’s sustainability team in Hong Kong to develop the Carbon Assessment Tool (CAT) as part of their wider sustainability strategy. This online tool is publicly available and designed to be used across the industry, from public owners, developers and designers to contractors and suppliers.
The CAT encourages carbon reduction through low carbon design and construction. It is now integrated into the BEAM Plus NB V.1.1 and 1.2, as announced by Cundall on 3 August 2020.
Following the launch of the tool in December 2019, the integration aims to further facilitate the understanding of embodied carbon in construction materials and carbon emissions created by the on-site construction process.
The objective is to encourage more users from the industry to use the tool and increase the number of building project assessments by it. The tool will also raise awareness about the need to reduce embodied carbon in construction projects, which will help the Hong Kong Government’s aims of reducing the total emission target by 26–36 per cent by 2030.
To encourage more industry users, the BEAM Society and CIC with Cundall’s assistance have implemented some credit requirements. An incentive has also been put in place to motivate users to study the embodied carbon of their project during the construction stage.
“This is a major milestone for the Carbon Assessment Tool since it encourages a wider group of peers in the industry to use it. It’s been our honour to deliver this industry-leading tool and help contribute towards Hong Kong’s carbon reduction target,” said Jonathan Yau, Associate Director at Cundall and Project Director of the CIC Carbon Assessment Tool Development project.
The integration of the CAT and BEAM Plus NB V1.1 and 1.2 is a big step forward for the tool’s development. It is hoped that this integration can influence the industry and encourage designers and builders to implement carbon reduction into their projects. — Construction+ Online
