Semi-Automated BIM-LCA Integration for Early-Stage Embodied Carbon Assessment: A Case Study of a Five-Story Office Building
School of Civil Engineering Architecture and Environment, Hubei University of Technology, Wuhan 430068, China
| Abstract: | The integration of Building Information Modelling (BIM) and Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) for early-stage building design is often limited by inconsistent material naming, manual classification, and time-consuming carbon calculations. Existing BIM-LCA approaches typically focus on structural components such as concrete and steel, while non-structural elements including partitions, finishes, and insulation remain underexplored despite their potential contribution to total embodied carbon. This study presents a semi-automated BIM-LCA workflow for whole-building embodied carbon assessment during cradle-to-gate (A1–A3) stages, developed in accordance with EN 15978:2011 and ISO 14040:2006. The workflow integrates automated material name cleaning, keyword-based classification with priority logic, and embedded density and emission factor assignment within a unified Excel-based framework using Visual Basic for Applications (VBA). A five-story office building modelled in Autodesk Revit at Level of Development (LOD) 300 serves as the case study, with material quantities extracted from the BIM model and processed through the VBA-based classification system; density values were obtained from the Engineering ToolBox and emission factors from the ICE Database Version 3.0. The workflow reduces manual processing time from 74.8 minutes to 4.5 minutes (94% reduction) through rule-based material classification and automated emission factor assignment. Results indicate that metal-related materials contribute 82% of total embodied carbon, with metal stud framing alone accounting for 81.6% due to its extensive use in partition walls across all five floors. Pareto analysis further confirms this concentration, with the top five materials responsible for over 94% of total embodied carbon, demonstrating that a small number of materials can dominate a building's embodied carbon profile. These findings highlight the importance of accounting for non-structural elements, frequently overlooked in conventional BIM-LCA assessments. The proposed method enables early-stage low-carbon design decisions without requiring specialized LCA expertise, offering a transparent, non-proprietary alternative to commercial BIM-LCA tools adaptable to different building typologies through modification of the keyword-based classification system. |
| Keywords: | Building Information Modelling (BIM); Early-Stage Design; Embodied Carbon; Life Cycle Assessment (LCA); Level of Development (LOD) 300; Pareto Analysis |
| DOI: | 10.57237/j.jsts.2026.02.001 |
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Received: 29 June 2026
Accepted: 21 July 2026
Published Online: 5 August 2026
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