In a context where sustainability has become a strategic pillar for many organizations, communicating with transparency and rigor is no longer optional. Consumers, investors, and regulators demand proof—not promises. In this scenario, the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) emerges as a key tool, not only for measuring the environmental impact of products and services but also for building a credible and evidence-based sustainability narrative.

What exactly is an LCA?

The Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is an internationally standardized methodology (under ISO 14040 and 14044) that allows organizations to identify, quantify, and evaluate the environmental impacts associated with all stages of a product, process, or service’s life cycle. These stages include: raw material extraction, production, transportation, use, maintenance, and end-of-life (e.g., recycling, incineration, or landfill).

This approach is based on a systemic perspective. Unlike other tools that only analyze one stage of the life cycle (for example, carbon footprint during use), LCA aims to capture the entire system—from cradle (resource extraction) to grave (waste management). This prevents burden shifting—reducing impact in one stage at the expense of increasing it in another—and enables meaningful comparisons between alternatives.

The Four Phases of an LCA

1. Goal and Scope Definition

This phase sets the foundation for the study: What will be analyzed? At what level of detail? For what purpose? An LCA can be conducted to compare alternatives (e.g., two types of packaging), guide eco-design (e.g., for product redesign), or support external communication (e.g., for ESG reports or regulatory compliance).

It also defines the product system boundaries, the functional unit (e.g., “washing 1 kg of clothing over a year”), and key assumptions. Poor choices at this stage can invalidate the rest of the analysis.

2. Life Cycle Inventory (LCI)

This stage involves collecting all input and output flows related to the system: raw materials, energy, water use, air emissions, wastewater, solid waste, etc. It includes primary data (e.g., measured at a facility) and secondary data (from databases like Ecoinvent, GaBi, or Agri-footprint).

Modeling is typically done with specialized software such as SimaPro, OpenLCA, or GaBi. The result is a detailed dataset describing every process in the product's life cycle.

3. Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA)

Once the inventory is ready, it is translated into quantifiable environmental impacts using characterization methodologies.

Each methodology (e.g., ReCiPe, ILCD, or Environmental Footprint 3.0) has different ways of modeling and weighing these impacts. The method selected should match the goals of the study and, in regulatory contexts, follow official standards (e.g., EU’s PEF methodology).

4. Interpretation

This phase extracts useful conclusions from the data. It identifies hotspots (processes or materials with the highest impact), runs sensitivity analyses on key assumptions, and assesses uncertainty. Internal consistency is reviewed and—if necessary—system boundaries or assumptions are revised.

This is the most strategic phase: it enables informed decision-making, prioritization of actions, and planning of roadmaps for environmental improvement.

How Does This Translate Into a Narrative?

An LCA provides a quantitative and verifiable foundation on which to build a coherent sustainability story. Rather than relying on vague or aspirational messages like “eco-friendly” or “green,” it allows for accurate, transparent communication:

🧦 “This garment emits 2.4 kgCO₂e from cultivation to end-of-life”
📦 “We reduced our logistics emissions by 18% by eliminating air freight”
🚿 “64% of this product’s impact comes from use: we recommend washing at 30°C and reducing frequency”

Such narratives resonate with multiple audiences—conscious consumers, ESG investors, product teams, regulators, and journalists—and above all, build trust, which is today’s most valuable asset.

How Can DEVERA Help?

Conducting a Life Cycle Assessment has traditionally been a long, expensive, and highly technical process. Organizations trying to assess their products’ environmental impact often face the following challenges:

• Fragmented or inaccessible data, spread across systems, documents, or suppliers

• Manual processes that take 3–6 months, even for a single product

• No real-time updates: emission factors change, but the LCA remains static

• High costs: specialized software, commercial databases, and external consultants

• Difficulty translating technical results into marketing, design, or compliance-friendly formats

• Disconnected teams: sustainability, procurement, marketing, and product teams operate in silos

In a world where communicating with transparency is as important as reducing emissions, Devera has reimagined LCA to make it faster, easier, and usable in real time:

• Automated Data Extraction
  We collect product data from your website, technical sheets, or internal documents—structured or not—and organize it by raw materials, manufacturing, transport, usage, and end-of-life.

• AI-Powered LCA
  We automate carbon footprint calculations per product according to ISO 14040/44, ISO 14067, and GHG Protocol standards. And we do it in days, not months.

• Actionable Insights & Benchmarking
  You get results that are benchmarked against industry averages, along with specific, data-driven recommendations for reducing impact. We also generate a sustainability score (0–100) to display publicly if you wish.

• E-commerce Integration
  With a simple widget, you can display the eco-score, life cycle emissions per stage, or a comparison with industry averages directly on product pages—transparency made easy.

• Regulatory Compliance
  We help you comply with the EU’s new Green Claims Directive, minimizing legal risks and enabling evidence-based environmental claims.

• Process Optimization & Strategic Decisions
  Our detailed reports identify your most impactful stages and offer concrete improvement actions. You can use this to inform product redesign, marketing claims, or investor presentations.

• Ongoing Updates & Maintenance
  We automatically update your data as emission factors or internal processes change, ensuring your results stay accurate and current.

In short, Devera transforms a complex, opaque LCA into a living, actionable tool for decision-making, communication, and continuous improvement. We democratize access to impact analysis so any brand—regardless of size or sector—can measure, differentiate, and progress toward real decarbonization.

Decode. Decide. Decarbonize.