Concrete
Pekabex Prefabrykacja
A precast concrete manufacturer that turned an internal question about environmental impact into a publicly verified answer.
“We thought the EPD process would be a compliance exercise. It turned out to be the most useful data we had ever collected about our own production. The numbers changed what we talk about internally.”
Technical Director, Pekabex Prefabrykacja
The Challenge
Pekabex produces precast concrete elements for residential, commercial, and infrastructure projects. Clients pursuing BREEAM certification increasingly required EPDs to calculate the embodied carbon of their buildings. Without a verified declaration, Pekabex could provide estimates — but not the standardised, auditable data that project certifiers require.
The Solution
Pekabex commissioned a Life Cycle Assessment in accordance with EN 16757:2022 (the European sector standard for concrete) and EN 15804+A2:2019. The LCA quantified the environmental impact of their precast elements from raw material extraction through production and transport to site. An independent reviewer verified the study methodology and data quality before the EPD was submitted to EPD Polska.
The Result
The verified EPD was published on EPDportal.org and is now included in project submission packages for clients pursuing BREEAM, LEED, and DGNB certification. Beyond procurement, the process prompted an internal review of concrete mix compositions — the LCA data identified cement content as the dominant GWP driver, directly informing ongoing product development.
Precast concrete is heavy, local, and long-lived. All of these qualities shape the environmental profile of the product — and all of them are captured in the EPD. For Pekabex, the process began as an internal question and ended as a procurement requirement met ahead of the competition.
The LCA identified concrete mix composition as the primary driver of environmental impact, with cement content the dominant variable. That finding is now driving internal conversations about mix optimisation — a consequence of the process that the company did not anticipate when they started.
The EPD is referenced in project documentation on infrastructure and commercial developments across Poland and in export markets. It is a document that answers a question before the question is asked.