When we talk about cutting a warehouse’s carbon footprint, we often think of ‘carbon emissions’. In fact, carbon has a much deeper presence in any building, even before its construction. Much of this ‘embodied carbon‘ has been spent by the time a business even moves in. With poor practices in areas like refurbishment, embodied carbon can pose an even bigger challenge for environmental compliance.

As it’s distinct from operational energy, embodied carbon emissions sit squarely in the world of design, fit-out and replacement cycles for your industrial building and space. With that in mind, it’s crucial for any business renting a warehouse to understand the contribution embodied carbon can make to its overall emissions.

What is embodied carbon?

‘Embodied carbon‘ (also known as ‘upfront carbon’) is created in the lifecycle of materials, including:

• Extraction of raw materials
• Processing into usable materials like steel, glass, concrete and so on
• Transporting materials
• Construction and manufacturing
• Maintenance
• Refurbishment
• Deconstruction

In other words, every building or piece of machinery you might use has its own embodied carbon count. This applies even with small businesses, including those focused on last-mile logistics.

As we continue working to reduce our footprint, embodied carbon emissions also account for a larger proportion of what remains. Additionally, projected global population growth could require significant future construction efforts. This has made the materials lifecycle a much more essential aspect of carbon reduction plans

Where does embodied carbon show up in your unit?

In a typical industrial warehouse unit, embodied carbon can be found almost everywhere. Because most of this impact is locked in at installation, small spec decisions can make a big difference. Typical sources include:

• Internal fit-out or alterations: Category A/B works partitions, floor finishes, M&E changes, welfare blocks.
• Material-heavy kit: Mezzanines, racking, loading docks, battery rooms, chargers.
• Refurbishment/ maintenance cycles: Replacing doors, roofs, facades, HVAC, etc.
• Site changes: Hardstanding, yard alteration, car-park surfacing.

Of course, it is worth keeping in mind that this only applies to your building and space. To calculate embodied carbon, you must also consider your supply chain, including how any materials you use are sourced and transported.

Why is embodied carbon a problem for warehouses?

Within logistical structures, last-mile spaces can continue building up embodied carbon through standard operations. Given how long units can last for, it’s also important to consider the footprint of refitting and maintenance. 

Added to this, supply chains are setting tougher sustainability requirements, while customers and investors are looking beyond electricity bills to the carbon profile of the spaces businesses utilise. 

What are the benefits of reducing embodied carbon in my business?

Managing your up-front carbon offers a number of benefits::

• Cost reduction: Choosing low-carbon materials from a reliable source can help reduce lead times and installation costs. For example, you might opt for lighter structures or more modular systems that are easier to repair and maintain.
• Customer & brand reputation: Opting for low-carbon supply chains and spaces can help you win and retain contracts. Investors are now more likely to screen these elements as part of their wider emission-reduction efforts.
• Compliance & reporting: Tackling embodied carbon is key for meeting environmental compliance targets. It increasingly features in market frameworks (certifications, client RFPs), so calculating the impact of each lifecycle stage can be extremely useful for finding opportunities to cut emissions.

How can I reduce embodied carbon in my property?

There are many ways to cut embodied carbon over the lifecycle of a commercial property:

• Reuse before replacing: Keep compliant partitions, racking and doors where possible, repairing them instead of ripping them out.
• Retrofit decarbonisation: While retrofitting can reduce warehouse emissions, it still has its own upfront carbon costs. You can reduce these by sourcing greener materials and more easily maintainable features. 
• Ask for EPDs: When sourcing concrete, steel, insulation, finishes and other construction or refurbishment elements, request their Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) and compare kgCO₂e per unit.
• Lean loads: When ordering materials, right-size your measurements so you order as much as you need. This will help you cut material wastage. 
• Modular features: For refurbishment or internal restructuring, opt for modular options such as demountable mezzanines and welfare units. These can be reused or moved, cutting the carbon footprint of future work.
• Design for disassembly: Opt for features and equipment that can be disassembled for easier maintenance, transportation and disposal. This means screw-fix, not glue bond, and using standard fasteners.
• Transport logistics: How materials are sourced and delivered impacts their overall embodied carbon. To reduce your footprint, source regionally, consolidate deliveries and utilise eco-friendly transportation as much as possible. 
• Smart maintenance: When choosing equipment, consider long-term maintenance. To reduce carbon, opt for choices with longer-life finishes and repairable individual components.

How does Mileway tackle embodied carbon?

Mileway’s sustainability focus is to run a resilient, low-carbon last-mile, working on operational efficiency (LEDs, PV, data quality) and supporting smarter specs and refurb choices that reduce unnecessary carbon in our portfolio. 

We integrate whole-life thinking into development and heavy refurb projects and share practical guidance for tenant fit-outs. We’re here to help you make lower-carbon choices without slowing your programme.

Want to find out more about Mileway’s approach? Contact a member of our team today.

FAQs

What does embodied carbon mean?

Embodied carbon is defined as the total greenhouse gas emissions created from a product’s lifecycle. This means everything from extracting their raw materials to deconstruction and disposal. 

In short, embodied carbon is ‘upfront carbon’: it has already been generated by the time you utilise the materials. Reducing embodied carbon is all about improving the lifecycle process, such as with greener transportation or by using more eco-friendly materials in refurbishment projects.