Mott MacDonald, the global engineering, management and development consultancy, has launched the first ever price book to contain estimated values for CO2 emissions of construction activities.

It is a new edition of the annual Hutchins UK Major Works Building Blackbook and aims to set a new standard in the construction industry. This is the first construction price book to include an estimate of CO2 emissions for all work as well as accurate pricing.

The new book will enable users to:
• Measure the carbon footprint of construction activities
• Estimate construction costs accurately and quickly
• Be able to consider cost and CO2 emissions in specification decisions
• Demonstrate environmental awareness
• Stay on top of recent price changes in the industry
• Track thousands of resource prices
• View the latest prices for sustainable construction products
• Access the latest labour rates and productivities
• Use benchmarked cost planning data

James Fiske, head of Mott MacDonald’s Economic Research Unit, anticipates the book will change the way that the industry measures cost and CO2 emissions. He said: “Traditionally measured by separate teams, this publication will at last give the industry the ability to produce cost estimates and carbon footprints for design options at speed, with accurate consistency.”

Launched at the Carbon Show at London’s ExCel, Mr Fiske explained, “By introducing carbon data into the Blackbook, we can now quantify the environmental impacts of our building decisions with greater ease. Building owners, operators and businesses are being placed under pressure to reduce their CO2 impact. This CO2 measure is going to become increasingly influential as we move into times of CO2 taxation and trading to comply with the reduction agreed in the UK Climate Change Act.”

http://www.price-books.co.uk/hutchins.htm