Essentials of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a critical tool for businesses and organizations aiming to improve sustainability, optimize resource efficiency, and comply with environmental policies. This course will guide professionals through fundamental LCA concepts, case studies, and real-world applications across various industries such as engineering, manufacturing, energy, construction, and consumer goods. Unlike traditional academic-focused LCA courses, this course is designed by professionals, for professionals—taught by experts who conduct and review LCAs on a regular basis at the industry level.

The goal of this course is to provide professionals with an introduction to Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)—a systematic approach for evaluating the environmental impacts of products, processes, and services. Participants will gain hands-on knowledge of the why we use LCA, LCA methodologies, data interpretation, regulatory considerations, and industry applications.

Through hands-on exercises and industry-specific discussions, you'll learn not just how LCA works, but how to actually use it to drive sustainability decisions, meet regulatory requirements, and create business value.

Why Enroll?

• Learn from leading professionals – Taught by experts who conduct and review LCAs at the industry level on a regular basis.
• Enhance your career – Gain skills that are increasingly in demand for sustainability and regulatory roles.
• Flexible learning – Balance your learning with your work schedule.
• Industry-relevant discussions - See how LCA is used for regulatory compliance, corporate sustainability, product design, and procurement.
• Understanding of relevant tools – Get an overview of major LCA tools (SimaPro, GaBi, OpenLCA). No prior experience or software license is required.
• Beyond calculations – Learn how to communicate results, integrate LCA into business decisions, and comply with regulations.

• Engineers & product designers
• Environmental consultants
• Those seeking to commission LCAs or understand LCA results
• Regulatory & compliance managers
• Sustainability and Environmental Management
• Manufacturing and Product Development
• Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
• Engineering Consultants
• Corporate sustainability officers
• Procurement & supply chain professionals
• Those looking to apply LCA in a business setting

No prior experience in LCA is required

The course will be offered as a live online course, with recordings made of each session so that participants can watch them at other times if they are not available at the meeting time. Therefore, this course can be flexible and accommodate a variety of schedules. The course meetings will take place once a week over a 6-week period, for a total of 6 sessions. Each session will be approximately 2 hours. There will be minimal work outside of the live sessions.

Session 1: Introduction to Life Cycle Assessment

• Overview of LCA and its importance in sustainability
• Why use LCA
• Benefits of LCA
• Applications of LCA
• Where can it be used and for what purpose
• How can it benefit organizations and their goals
• Explore how to communicate LCA and its applications to others
• Introduction to Product Category Rules (PCR) and Environmental Product Declaration(EPD)
• Regulatory Compliance & ESG Reporting
• Product Innovation & Eco-Design
• Competitive Advantage & Consumer Trust
• Key concepts: Functional units, system boundaries, impact categories
• Methodological Framework for LCA
• LCA frameworks and standards (ISO 14040/14044)
• Integrating LCA into a corporate sustainability program

Session Objective: Understand the fundamental principles and applications of LCA.

Session 2: LCA Data and Data Collection

• Explore Use Cases and types of LCAs. How are the results going to be used?

• Screening LCAs – internal use only
• Product Design & Development
• Regulatory Compliance & ESG Reporting
• Green Building & Construction
• Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) focused reporting
• Other topics

• Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) data collection – Iterative Approach
• Primary vs. secondary data sources
• LCA databases (e.g., Ecoinvent, GaBi, SimaPro)
• Benefits of one database over the other, depending on use case

Session Objective: Explore use cases and learn how to identify data sources, collect and organize LCA data effectively.

Session 3: Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA)

• Environmental impact categories (carbon footprint, water use, toxicity)
• Impact assessment methods (e.g., TRACI, ReCiPe, etc)
• Results Interpretation and Uncertainty Analysis – data quality
• Qualitative vs quantitative
• Sensitivity analysis, uncertainty analysis, contribution analysis

Session Objective: Evaluate and compare the performance of different products and processes.

Session 4: LCA Software and Tools

• Overview of LCA software (SimaPro, GaBi, OpenLCA, Umberto, etc)
• Note: Detailed training on a specific software will not be provided
• Conducting a basic LCA study using LCA software & Data
• Mapping out the model – use a class example
• Product System – System Model
• Life-cycle stages/phases
• Overview of
• GaBi
• SimaPro
• Umberto
• Open LCA
• Spreadsheet based approach
• Where to get data

Session Objective: Understanding commonly used LCA tools and software.

Session 5: Applications of LCA in Industry

• Organizational LCA and GHG protocol

• Carbon Footprint & Climate Strategy
• Calculating total emissions (CO¿, methane, etc.) across a product’s life cycle
• Identifying opportunities for carbon offsetting
• Measuring and reducing emissions (Scope 1, 2, and 3)

• LCA in product design and development
• Material Selection and Optimization (de-materialization/lightweighting)
• Energy & Resource Efficiency in Product Manufacturing
• LCA in supply chain management and procurement – evaluation
• Identify hot-spots in the supply-chain
• Transportation/logistics
• Durability & Performance
• Packaging Sustainability
• End-of-Life (Extended Producer Responsibility)
• Comparative Analysis – marketing & making claims
• Environmental Product Declaration(EPD)
• Engineering consulting - Use as a decision-making tool
• Case studies from energy, manufacturing, construction, and consulting

Session Objective: Understand real-world applications of LCA across different industries.

Session 6: Regulatory and Business Considerations – Reporting/Disclosing

• Best practices for reporting and communicating results
• Critical review / review panel, comparative analysis, etc
• Regulatory frameworks (EU Green Deal, SEC climate disclosures, EPA guidelines)
• Governance – Business Strategy
• Corporate sustainability strategies and reporting
• Embedding Sustainability into Business Strategy
• Board Level Decision making backed by data
• Integrating LCA into decision-making processes
• Compliance with Global Regulations
• Transparency
• Managing Risk – in terms of sustainable practices

Session Objective: Understanding best practices for reporting and communicating. Apply LCA to regulatory compliance and business decision-making.

Adib Amini

Adib Amini, Ph.D., PE, ENV SP, BCEE serves as Program Director in the College of Engineering’s Office of Interdisciplinary Professional Programs, with a focus on Water, Wastewater, Stormwater, and Sustainability. Dr. Amini also works with cities and industries as an engineering consultant, with experience in both drinking water and wastewater treatment. Dr. Amini has expertise in sustainability, engineering design, technology innovation, and renewable energy. Dr. Amini’s work has included the design of novel technologies, including on-site energy systems at facilities. He spearheaded the designs for the first wastewater treatment facilities in Iowa that are 100% powered by on-site renewable energy systems. Dr. Amini invented a novel system for ventilation of rated spaces, such as wastewater headworks buildings, for which he holds a provisional patent. Dr. Amini also has performed award-winning research in technology innovation and sustainability. Dr. Amini has spoken widely at conferences on topics related to water/wastewater treatment, sustainability, PFAS, on-site energy systems, and resilient infrastructure.