Build in Digital’s latest online microconference explored the issues of circular construction and digital carbon tracking, with guest speakers explaining how to get the data flowing
As an industry, construction has become relatively comfortable measuring operational energy, but remains largely in the dark when it comes to tracking the embodied carbon hidden inside the materials themselves.
Indeed, as Build in Digital‘s latest microconference explored, the built environment sectors have no shortage of carbon and material data –the problem is that hardly any of it moves. However, as the industry experts taking part in Circular Construction & Digital Carbon Tracking made clear – it doesn’t have to be this way.
The online event took a focused and honest look at how data-driven tools like Materials Passports, BIM, and Blockchain technologies are actually being used to track a building’s lifecycle from the ground up.
Sharing their expertise and insights were Deniz Aygen, chief growth officer at EcoWise. She is a tech executive focused on how intelligent automation and AI can scale sustainability frameworks across the market.
Next on the line-up was Anastasia Stella, chief executive of Circuland. A pioneer in Material Passports, the company is currently working at EU level to standardise how building components are tracked.
Then there was Doug Johnson, founder of MESH. A chartered engineer, he has two decades of experience helping architects and developers navigate low-carbon solutions both practically and impartially.
Together, their presentations painted a picture of an industry that already possesses many of the tools it needs – but has yet to connect them in ways that drive meaningful change.
A problem of data fluidity
Aygen opened proceedings with a frank assessment of where the industry currently stands. Construction, she argued, does not lack data – it lacks the infrastructure to share it.
Material and carbon information sits fragmented across 80 different systems, owned by 12 organisations, stored in nine different formats. The consequence is that data that exists in one part of a project cannot easily travel to another.
She framed the challenge around three fundamental shifts the industry must make. The first is moving from simply collecting data to actively circulating it – treating information as something that should flow across project boundaries rather than accumulate in siloed repositories.
The second shift concerns data sovereignty: rather than pooling everything into centralised data lakes, organisations need frameworks that respect ownership while still enabling interoperability. The third involves identity – replacing basic password systems with decentralised, permissioned identity structures that allow verified access without surrendering control.
On the question of supply chain engagement, Aygen noted that manufacturers are broadly willing to comply with emerging regulations, and suggested that organisations begin with a focused consultation to identify their specific data challenges before implementing new tools.
Critically, she warned that housing associations and asset owners should prioritise cleaning and structuring existing data before deploying artificial intelligence or advanced analytics – poor data quality, she stressed, would undermine any intelligence layered on top of it.
External validation also featured in her presentation. Self-published product data, she explained, must be verified by independent certification bodies to meet regulatory requirements, particularly where environmental and ESG attributes are concerned.
From buildings to passports
Stella took a more practical approach, demonstrating how Circuland’s building passport platform translates the principles of circular economy into operational tools. The system creates digital records for both new and existing buildings, tracking materials through their entire lifecycle – from design and construction through to use and eventual end-of-life.
She explained that Circuland’s platform can scale from individual buildings to portfolio-level analysis, aggregating data across multiple assets in a standardised, machine-readable format.
Stella went on to explain how existing specifications, CAD models, EPDs, and data sheets can all serve as starting points for building passports – organisations need not begin from scratch. For older buildings lacking documentation, Circuland works with asset owners and inspectors to assess current status, using AI-assisted analysis of inspection reports and available records to establish embodied carbon and reuse potential.
The platform has also evolved its approach to supply chain data collection. Rather than relying on manual templates – a process prone to error and delay – Circuland now uses AI-powered extraction from verified documents, improving both accuracy and efficiency.
Connecting data early enough to matter
Doug Johnson of Mesh closed the event with an argument that cut to the operational heart of the challenge. Data, he said, is not the industry’s primary problem – timing is. Construction teams often possess the information they need, but access it too late in the process to influence the decisions that matter most.
Johnson called for earlier collaboration between all project stakeholders, arguing that real-time design feedback – enabled by trusted, integrated data – is essential if circularity and embodied carbon reduction are to move from aspiration to practice.
He pointed to embodied carbon as the next likely area of regulatory attention, placing added urgency on the industry’s ability to capture and act on material data at the design stage rather than report on it retrospectively.
His presentation also addressed the structural fragmentation that hampers progress: siloed decision-making between architects, contractors, and facilities managers means that circularity intentions agreed at design stage can fail to materialise on site.
Continuity of teams and clear communication across project phases, he argued, are as important as the digital tools themselves.
Key takeaways
Several clear priorities emerged from across the three presentations:
Get existing data in order first. Before implementing new platforms or AI tools, organisations should audit and structure what they already hold – EPDs, data sheets, inspection reports – in standardised, machine-readable formats.
Build sovereignty into data systems. Centralised data lakes are not the answer. The industry needs permissioned, interoperable frameworks that allow information to flow while respecting ownership.
Use digital passports for legacy as well as new build. Building passports are not only for new construction. Existing assets can be brought into digital tracking systems using available documentation and inspection-based assessment.
Act at design stage, not after. Carbon and material data has most value when it informs early design decisions. Tools and workflows must be configured to deliver insight in real time, not generate reports after the fact.
Verify, don’t self-certify. Product and environmental data submitted to digital systems should be validated by recognised certification bodies to ensure regulatory compliance and stakeholder trust.
Share knowledge across the industry. Several speakers emphasised that faster adoption of circular and low-carbon practices depends on open sharing of experience – including what has not worked – across organisations and sectors.
Find out more about Build in Digital’s programme of online microconferences here
Image credit: ConceptCafe/Shutterstock
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