EN 15804- Looking for a Super User

Question

Hello to all in the forum,

Is there anyone out there familiar with the above impact assessment method? I am trying to finish an EPD but the energy and materials categories (PEC, NRE, RE, NRM, and RM) are empty. In the absence of any helpful information from the software provider, I contacted companies who supposedly use OpenLCA. As it turns out, most have abandoned it and I can not find help. I spoke to a university and it seems that universities are the only real super users available so I was hoping to find someone who could walk me through adding impact factors. I know exactly what needs to be done to be fixed and I just need a little direction and so far finding that direction has proved frustrating and very difficult.

Please, if anyone knows anyone who can possibly help, please send them my way. I am so stuck and I need to finish this project.

Thank you in advance for your time. I really do greatly appreciate any help available.

Dina

Answer 1

Dina, as said, the categories are empty since you use a database that does not support EN15804, and we are offering one that does suport EN15804.
Thank you.

- we somehow are quite often target of trolls it seems, or of users who expect that we can offer anything for free because the software is free - but of course, we also have expenses and expect fair payment for our work. But we created openLCA since in our impression, current LCA software is too expensive, which is a bottleneck to LCA application
- openLCA in industry: We clearly have more academic users but know of quite some companies who use, and continue to use, openLCA; it is true that some take openLCA less seriously than other LCA software because it is free, but those who commit to using it also typically stay; and we see increasing demand from industry currently. We are working on a version to add some features more interesting for business use currently btw.

Comments

Thank you for the reply. I`m just trying to find a fix. I was originally misled about completing an EPD with this software and now I am stuck. Please understand, I`m just trying to fix the issue. Because I did not budget this project for $5000 software and I`m really just trying to finish the project. I know better for the next project and I can advise the university on the best course of action in the future but until then I am stuck.

What I am hoping to find is a way to enter what is needed in a step by step guide or find someone who I can pay to run them for me. I don`t care which at this point, I just want to finish this project.

This is my frustration and I hope you understand. I have never used OpenLCA and I did not fully understand it`s limitations. I was skeptical but the university sent me these two articles as proof that OpenLCa could run an EPD:

http://www.openlca.org/information-material-on-the-epd-editor-in-openlca-is-now-uploaded/
http://www.openlca.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/EPD-Editor-EN.pdf

Now I am just trying to finish the project and I am running out of time. Any real help you can offer I would be greatly appreciative of.

Thank you again and I hope you understand my despair in trying to finish this project.

Dina

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OK Dina. Then I would recommend you order the EuGeos database, which is made for creating EPDs with openLCA, from here: https://nexus.openlca.org/database/EuGeos%27%2015804-IA, as altenerative to paying someone who prepares a database for being used as EPD EN15804 database, or find instructions how to create such a database manually.
Best,
Andreas