RESET Factoid #2 - Embodied Carbon for Office Interiors vs. Core & Shell

Calculating embodied carbon for Core & Shell is relatively straightforward since the materials used consist primarily of concrete, steel, glass, and aluminum. Interiors are more complex, often involving 10 to 20 times more materials than Core and Shell. RESET Embodied projects can require the evaluation of carbon impact across approximately a hundred materials for interiors.

Data from RESET shows that if office interiors are rebuilt more than four times during the life of a building, their carbon emissions can exceed those of Core and Shell. Assuming a typical renovation rate of once every 8.5 years, interiors would undergo about 5.9 renovations over 50 years, which results in emissions that are 32% higher than Core and Shell. Emissions can rise up to almost 4x higher than Core & Shell for shorter office leases with an average lifespan of 2.5 years.

The RESET Embodied Carbon Standard is designed to help projects collect and organize embodied carbon data for both Interiors and Core & Shell. The data is used to measure and benchmark, establishing a quantitative baseline to set targets and start the iterative journey toward reduction and regeneration.

To explore RESET’s research on embodied carbon, click here.

About RESET®

RESET® is an international performance data standard and certification program, created and managed by GIGA, that offers a pathway towards decarbonization by developing actionable and measurable strategies towards regenerative sustainability and health for the built environment. RESET takes a quantitative and holistic approach to embodied and operational data by combining the development of databases, data collection, continuous monitoring, and cloud software to automate reporting and analytics, which then generates opportunities for iterative improvement and optimizations.

The RESET Embodied Standards include Embodied Carbon, Circularity, and Health, while the RESET Operational Standards include Air, Energy, Water, and Waste.

For more information about RESET, please visit: https://www.reset.build/