Carbon profiling of a school building at an architectural practice

This paper describes the process, challenges and results of a carbon profiling tool used as part of the design process at White Design Associates. The paper first explores the need amongst designers for a carbon profiling tool to enable and encourage a focus on carbon reduction, as a key element in the fight against global warming. Next it describes the methodology adopted by White Design Associates to develop a tool to be used throughout the building design process, to inform design decisions, and begin to quantify the climate change impact of the finished building. Examples from the most recent iteration of the tool, used during the construction of John Ferneley College, illustrate the development of the tool, the challenges that were faced, and the „headline‟ results of the analysis. It also illustrates how White Design incorporated the results into the curriculum through web updates and highlights the Carbon Stacks visualisation tool.