In North America, the Athena Impact Estimator for Buildings is the only free software tool that is designed to evaluate whole buildings and assemblies based on internationally recognized life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology.

Using the Impact Estimator, architects, engineers and others can easily assess and compare the environmental implications of industrial, institutional, commercial and residential designs — both for new buildings and major renovations. Where relevant, the software also distinguishes between owner-occupied and rental facilities.

The Impact Estimator puts the environment on equal footing with other more traditional design criteria at the conceptual stage of a project. It is capable of modeling 95% of the building stock in North America, using the best available data.

The Estimator takes into account the environmental impacts of:

• Material manufacturing, including resource extraction and recycled content
• Related transportation
• On-site construction
• Regional variation in energy use, transportation and other factors
• Building type and assumed lifespan
• Maintenance and replacement effects
• Demolition and disposal