The rapid expansion of digital infrastructure—driven by cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and increasing global connectivity—is accelerating data center construction worldwide. While operational energy efficiency has historically been the primary sustainability focus for data centers, the embodied carbon associated with construction materials, equipment, and site infrastructure is becoming an increasingly significant share of total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. As electricity grids continue to decarbonize, embodied carbon will represent a larger proportion of life cycle impacts, making it a critical lever for near-term emissions reduction within the digital infrastructure sector.
This case study is intended to assist data center developers, owners, and design professionals by providing guidance and best practices for measuring—and ultimately reducing—the embodied carbon impacts (expressed as CO₂e in this publication) of data center construction through the use of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). Developed by the Materials and Equipment Working Groups of the iMasons Climate Accord, this guide supports sustainability leaders, design engineers, and developers who have foundational familiarity with embodied carbon but seek clarity on how to apply LCA methodologies specifically to data center projects.
Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a standardized tool used to quantify the environmental impacts of a product, system, or process across defined stages of its life cycle. While this guide focuses primarily on embodied carbon, LCAs provide a broader understanding of environmental performance and can also capture social and economic considerations. It is important to note that an LCA does not need to encompass an entire life cycle to be valuable; appropriately scoped assessments—such as cradle-to-gate or cradle-to-grave—can provide actionable insights depending on project goals, data availability, and design phase. A product carbon footprint (PCF), by contrast, focuses solely on carbon emissions and represents a narrower application of life cycle thinking.
In the context of data center construction, LCAs are commonly used to calculate or estimate emissions associated with material extraction, manufacturing, transportation, construction, use, and end-of-life scenarios. These assessments are an essential tool for organizations seeking to understand and address Scope 3 GHG emissions in support of corporate and regulatory emissions reduction objectives. Although LCAs are often product-specific, they also enable improved transparency and collaboration across the supply chain by allowing suppliers to provide primary data to customers—such as data center owner-operators—or, conversely, by enabling owners to better understand the embodied carbon impacts of specific materials and equipment.
Unlike most commercial buildings, data centers are highly material- and equipment-intensive. Structural systems, electrical distribution, cooling infrastructure, and site-wide utilities contribute substantial embodied carbon that is not consistently captured using conventional building LCA approaches. As a result, the industry currently lacks standardized, comparable methods for applying whole-building LCAs to data centers—limiting benchmarking, obscuring reduction opportunities, and slowing progress at scale.
This guide addresses these challenges by outlining practical, industry-aligned best practices for scoping, timing, data collection, and interpretation of LCAs for data center projects. Particular emphasis is placed on Scope 3, Category 1—Purchased Goods and Services—which represents the most significant and actionable source of embodied carbon in data center construction. The guidance recognizes varying levels of data availability and promotes a sliding scale of data accuracy to support early decision-making while enabling refinement over time.
Key takeaways from this case study include:
- Embodied carbon is a material and growing component of data center emissions and must be addressed alongside operational efficiency.
- Whole-building LCAs for data centers must extend beyond the building envelope to include site infrastructure and equipment-intensive systems.
- Early, iterative LCAs enable the most effective and cost-efficient carbon reduction strategies.
- Consistent scoping, transparent assumptions, and standardized reporting are essential for meaningful benchmarking and comparison.
- Collaboration across owners, designers, contractors, and suppliers—supported by improved product-level data such as EPDs—is critical to scaling embodied carbon reductions across the industry.
By applying the guidance outlined in this document, project teams can move beyond isolated assessments toward a shared, industry-aligned approach to measuring and reducing embodied carbon—supporting the iMasons Climate Accord mission to enable the responsible growth of digital infrastructure through collaboration, transparency, and action.
Stay tuned for the case study release.