Planet Metrics launches online carbon tracking tool

Californian software firm Planet Metrics has this week launched a new online tool designed to help companies calculate carbon emissions from all aspects of their supply chains.

The beta version of the Rapid Carbon Modelling product uses a combination of carbon emissions data gathered by Planet Metrics and data that can be entered by the client, such as bill of materials, product formulations, and transportation logistics, to calculate the full life cycle emissions associated with a product. It enables companies to look at emissions and energy use from the material extraction phase to the point at which products are disposed of.

Andy Leventhal, founder and chief executive of Planet Metrics, argued that tracking a product's carbon footprint could deliver significant business benefits. "A lower carbon footprint leads to lower cost, and as more organisations recognise that deeper understanding of the materials they use helps drive better decisions on sourcing, transportation and distribution, they will create sustainable best practices and greatly improve the bottom line," he said.

Adam Lowry, co-founder of green cosmetics firm Method, which has trialled the software, said it had already helped the company identify potential carbon and cost savings. "By better understanding volatile energy and resource prices, we can make better decisions to lessen the overall footprint and save money," he said.

Life cycle analysis is becoming an increasingly significant part of many companies' environmental strategies. Rather than simply focusing on ethical product disposal, companies are hoping to find out how much carbon is "embedded " in their products as a result of emissions further up the supply chain, including while in manufacturing plants, and during transportation.

The Rapid Carbon Modelling software also allows supply chain managers to conduct "what-if" scenarios, where they can analyse ways in which emissions could be reduced at various points in the product life cycle.

The company said the functionality allows businesses to assess energy costs at different points in the supply chain, and analyse the impact on margins of future carbon pricing schemes, such as the carbon as cap and trade legislation currently being considered in the US.