(Credit: Pixabay)A lifecycle assessment automation platform will help chemical manufacturers track their sustainability progress throughout their entire operations.
Materials company Eastman is collaborating with Sphera on an upcoming iteration of Shpera’s life cycle assessment (LCA) automation software. The companies say the next phase of the system is designed to meet the complex needs of the chemical industry.
Eastman says there is increasing demand from commercial entities to provide transparent sustainability information. That can be difficult in the chemical industry because carbon footprint calculations must include materials that companies buy as well as emissions during the manufacturing process.
The manufacturing process can consist of dozens of steps, each having its own sustainability impact. Collecting data from all the systems involved in those operations is also necessary to get a complete view of how a company is doing regarding its carbon footprint, the companies say.
The chemical sector is the largest industrial consumer of energy, according to the International Energy Agency, and the third largest industry subsector in terms of direct carbon emissions. That is because nearly half of its energy is used as feedstock, fuel used as raw material input rather than as a source of energy, the IEA says.
A report from Deloitte says the chemical industry in the United States emits 200 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent per year. That report says due to growth in the industry, without changes the industry’s greenhouse gas emissions will nearly double within 30 years.
That is where systems to help automatically track impacts throughout a company’s operations to help make improvements in efficiency can lead to improvements.
Sphera launched its LCA automation platform earlier in 2022. It aims to help companies address their ESG efforts across all aspects of their operations, including giving insights into the entire supply chain, as well as monitoring Scope 3 emissions. Sphera says it was designed to be beneficial for industries with complex operations such as manufacturing, paints, and chemicals.
Automation and advanced data use are also becoming more important in improving sustainability, efficiency, and reporting abilities. It can be especially important in an industry such as chemicals, where emissions and pollution are often a concern.
A Planet Tracker report from earlier this year said investors should demand toxic emissions transparency. The EPA has been increasing its focus on chemicals such as per-and poly-fluoroalkyl substances, and states like California are instituting tougher regulations on chemicals used in everyday products.
Chemical company Sasol Chemicals is deploying artificial intelligence-driven technology in its Ethylene Unit at its Louisiana plant to measure and monitor energy usage and emissions. Sphera is also enhancing its automated risk monitoring through the acquisition of software company Riskmethods.
Sphera says the partnership with Eastman will help ensure LCA automation results in the appropriate functionality as well as reliable data calculations for the chemical industry.
