In the wood industry, transparency often involves releasing EPDs after product finalisation, offering a static ecological snapshot. However, Koskisen is disrupting this cycle. By adopting DesignEPD, a progressive approach to environmental assessments, the company is shifting sustainability from the end of the production line directly into the designer’s hands. This shift represents a move from mere regulatory compliance to “sustainability by design,” enabling architects and engineers to optimize the carbon footprint of a project before a single tree is processed.
While a standard EPD provides standardized, third-party verified data on a product’s lifecycle impact, it is often too rigid for the fast-paced world of product development. Standard EPDs are essentially “report cards” for existing products; DesignEPDs are “simulators” for future ones.
Riitta Ahokas, RDI Manager at Koskisen, highlights a critical technical distinction:
“The biggest difference between EPDs and DesignEPDs is in their validity periods. Traditional EPDs are typically updated every five years, whereas DesignEPDs operate on a much shorter, dynamic cycle.”
Important Characteristics of the DesignEPD Framework:
- Early-Stage Integration: Sustainability metrics are embedded into the initial sketches and material selections.
- Carbon Capture Analysis: Detailed tracking of biogenic carbon storage (carbon sequestration) specifically for plywood and chipboard.
- End-of-Life Forecasting: Assessing recyclability and thermal recovery potential during the design phase to support a circular economy.
- Agility: Fast iterations allow for the comparison of different adhesives, coatings, or wood species to find the lowest-impact combination.
The development of DesignEPD hasn’t happened in a vacuum. It is the result of deep-sector collaboration between Koskisen, its client base, and strategic partners like Stora Enso.
A major focus of this collaboration involves the use of lignin—a natural polymer that acts as the “glue” in trees—to replace fossil-based resins in wood products. Sara Fäldt, RnD Manager at Stora Enso, who has worked closely on Koskisen’s lignin-based projects, sees DesignEPD as the perfect vehicle for these new materials.
“The future of lignin is looking bright—or brown, just like its natural colour,” says Fäldt. “We are only beginning to explore how it can replace oil-based materials. Products like Koskisen’s ‘Zero’ line bring their own reduced impact, and DesignEPDs are crucial to measuring and proving that lack of impact in construction.”
Koskisen is no stranger to carbon counting. The firm conducted its first carbon footprint calculations as early as 2011 and was among the first in the massive wood industry to publish certified EPDs for plywood and chipboard in 2020.
In the context of massive wood, these documents reveal a powerful story: wood products act as long-term carbon storage. For as long as a building stands, the carbon absorbed by the tree during its growth remains “locked” within the structure, effectively turning urban skylines into man-made forests.
The move toward DesignEPDs is more than a voluntary sustainability gesture; it is a strategic “future-proofing” move against tightening European legislation.
The EU Construction Products Regulation (CPR), following its significant revision in 2024, has fundamentally changed the rules of market access. The new framework places environmental performance on equal footing with technical safety and structural integrity.
As we approach compliance deadlines, several key changes will become mandatory for the massive wood industry:
Digital Product Passports (DPPs): Every construction component will require a digital record containing its full technical and environmental history.
Mandatory Environmental Reporting: Reporting on carbon emissions and energy consumption is no longer optional for priority products.
Evolved CE Marking: The familiar CE mark will soon reflect not just how strong a beam is, but how “green” it is.
Manufacturers who fail to align their internal data systems with these standards risk losing access to the European market. Koskisen’s investment in DesignEPD ensures that their Declarations of Performance (DoP) are already aligned with these upcoming requirements.
The adoption of DesignEPD signals a transition from seeing sustainability as a “burden of proof” to seeing it as a “tool for innovation.” By embedding environmental metrics into the very DNA of wood-based construction materials, Koskisen is providing architects and developers with the precision they need to meet global climate goals.
In an industry where every gram of carbon matters, the ability to predict and prevent emissions before they occur is the ultimate competitive advantage. As Riitta Ahokas concludes, “This is a tool our customers need for their own development, helping us all contribute to a more sustainable built environment.”
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