Calculating the carbon impact of intralogistics projects

These days, there is probably not a single construction project that doesn’t involve concrete. And the material has become indispensable for Krones, too – not only for the construction and modernisation measures currently in progress, but also for the realisation of customer projects, starting with the base plates which have to bear the weight of plant and machinery weighing several tonnes or even an entire high-bay warehouse.

Concrete offers some outstanding benefits: Not only is it stable, long-lasting, and easily formable, but it also absorbs sound, stores heat, and is non-combustible. 

Despite all the positive aspects that the construction material has, though, it is less than ideal for the climate. That’s because, in addition to water, a binder and aggregate, the manufacture of concrete also requires cement. This consists of a mixture of limestone and clay which is ground into powder and then dried. In the next step this blend is burned in a furnace at about 1,450 degrees Celsius. That requires a huge amount of energy, which in turn generates a lot of CO₂. Around one third of the overall emissions from the manufacture of cement are produced when heating the furnace. The greatest share of the CO₂ is released by the limestone itself, however: Burning just one tonne of cement emits around 600 kilograms. Overall, some 20 million tonnes of CO₂ are produced in Germany each year, as much as 2.8 billion tonnes worldwide.

The use of concrete is just one example of the indirect CO₂ output of the projects we realise for customers. But there are other causes of CO₂ emissions, too, such as the production of steel or the journeys that trucks make to deliver the necessary components to the sites. All these aspects play a role in the scope 3 emissions of Krones – and have a corresponding impact on our carbon footprint. 

New tool calculates CO₂ emissions 

It was precisely this issue that Fahad Mumtaz tackled in partnership with System Logistics GmbH for his master’s thesis at the Amberg-Weiden Institute of Technology. The outcome was a tool that enables up to three layout versions of high-bay warehouses to be compared in terms of their carbon footprint. 

The tool can be used to record the concrete volumes of the base plate and building shell and calculate the number of truck journeys required for concrete and steel reinforcement. The steel tonnages for stacker cranes, steel shelving, conveyor and transport systems, electric overhead conveyor systems, electric overhead monorail systems, automated guided vehicle systems and forklifts can also be factored in. The figures for the respective production sites of these components are then used to calculate the transport distances involved and the resulting CO₂ emissions. 

The system also offers the option of entering the electricity consumption data for the relevant components and recording the operating hours. The total electricity consumption over the life cycle of the system can then be calculated and the resulting CO₂ emissions output.

While it is not possible to determine precise footprint figures using this approach, a useful reference value can still be obtained, because all layout versions will be calculated on the same principle.

For System Logistics, the introduction of the tool was just a first step. “I could imagine the tool being expanded at a later date in order to determine the costs of the CO₂ emissions certificates required based on the CO₂ output figures, for instance, as well as possible positive effects through compensating measures, such as the construction of facilities for generating renewable energy, and even rewilding schemes,” explains Dieter Kotzbauer, System Logistics, System Design, adding: “But even negative impacts of the construction activity, such as surface sealing, could be factored into the calculation algorithms of the tool.”