PARTNERS AND NETWORK
Who we work with closely
Three areas describe our partnerships: an industry network of verifiers and testing institutes, the support we draw from research and education, and the database and software basis we work on methodologically.
OUR NETWORK
Our industry partners
Three partners from the industry, testing and verification world: IBU as an established EPD verification programme, ift Rosenheim as a testing institute and EPD programme operator in its own right, and SKZ as the research and testing institute of the plastics industry, with whom we develop the LCA methodology further.
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IBU · Institut Bauen und Umwelt An established verification programme for EPDs to EN 15804+A2 Berlin · Germany EPD verification · DACH market
ecoverity is listed with IBU as an official LCA practitionerInstitut Bauen und Umwelt e. V. is one of the most important German programmes for Environmental Product Declarations to EN 15804+A2 and ISO 14025. IBU EPDs are particularly relevant in the DACH market, for DGNB, BNB and QNG assessments and for ÖKOBAUDAT publications.
We guide EPD projects through the IBU process, from producing the study to programme requirements through queries with the verifiers to handing over the ILCD+EPD data sets.
Focus areas
- Programme requirements and PCRs for construction products
- The IBU database and ILCD+EPD data sets
- Connection to DGNB, BNB, QNG and ÖKOBAUDAT
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ift Rosenheim An established testing institute and EPD programme operator Rosenheim · Germany EPD programme · building elements · CE notification
ift Rosenheim is an established testing institute and an independent EPD programme operator for building elements. It verifies and publishes Environmental Product Declarations to EN 15804+A2 and ISO 14025, with particular relevance for windows, doors, facades, glass and other building elements.
We guide EPD projects through the ift process, from producing the study to programme requirements through queries with the verifiers to handing over the ILCD+EPD data sets. Because ift is also a notified body for CE marking and runs its own test rigs, test data can feed directly into the LCA modelling.
Focus areas
- Programme requirements and PCRs for building elements
- EPD publication in the ift programme and ILCD+EPD data sets
- Their own test data fed directly into LCA models
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SKZ · Das Kunststoff-Zentrum Research and testing institute · joint LCA methodology development Würzburg · Germany Plastics · Research · Testing · Certification
SKZ has been the research, testing and training institute of the plastics industry since 1961, supported by the Fördergemeinschaft für das Kunststoff-Zentrum FSKZ e. V. Its head office is in Würzburg, with further sites in Halle, Horb am Neckar, Peine and Selb. The institute works across five areas, testing, education and training, research and development, certification of management systems and industry networking, and counts more than 400 member companies.
With SKZ we research and develop new approaches to life cycle assessment. For construction products made of plastics this matters directly: recyclate content, multi-layer build-ups and materials analysis are exactly the places where the available LCA and EPD software reaches its limits.
Focus areas
- Joint research on LCA methodology for plastics
- Materials analysis and recyclate assessment
- Accredited testing laboratories and product certification
Support from research and education
Our methodology lives on the exchange with universities and leading educational institutions: discussions on method updates, participation in consultations on PCR and ISO developments, and ongoing exchange on decisions about standards. We test new approaches where experimenting is allowed, before they go into a client project.
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Dr.-Ing. Sven Mackenbach Senior engineer · head of the Circular Construction research area Institute of Construction Management, Digital Engineering and Robotics in Construction (ICoM) · RWTH Aachen Circular Construction · Modular Building · Reverse Logistics
Sven Mackenbach has been a senior engineer at ICoM since January 2023, responsible for building and leading the Circular Construction research area. His remit covers overall supervision of the research projects and the academic support of project staff. He teaches the Sustainable Construction Management course.
He completed his doctorate at RWTH Aachen in June 2023 with a focus on circular construction. Beyond his academic work he has extensive practical experience in sustainability consulting and sustainability coaching for actors along the construction value chain.
Focus areas
- Circular economy in construction
- Modular construction · circular business models
- Reverse logistics · cleaner production
- Life cycle thinking in construction product assessment
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Philip E. Reichen AI specialist and founders mentor · advisory role for ecoverity Founder of Super AI Labs · ETH Zurich Agentic AI · Custom AI software · Founder mentoring
Philip E. Reichen founded Super AI Labs, a small senior team in Zurich that builds custom AI software for Swiss SMEs, public authorities and large enterprises. The team sets out to deliver working software in weeks rather than months of concept phases. Before that he built software for and at Fortune 500 companies, mid-sized firms and startups.
He studied mechanical engineering and industrial engineering at ETH Zurich, where he led ETH juniors as president and has mentored founding teams since 2026. For ecoverity he acts in an advisory role as our sparring partner on AI and technology. He keeps us up to date with current developments, challenges our technical decisions and points out where new tools can move our methodology and automation forward.
Focus areas
- Agentic AI and AI systems in productive use
- Forward deployed engineering and fast delivery
- Technology scouting for methodology and automation
- Mentoring founding teams at ETH Zurich
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ETH Student Project House Project and prototyping environment at ETH Zurich Zurich · Switzerland Prototyping · Makerspace · Student projects
Meet our team at the SPHThe Student Project House is the ETH Zurich facility where students at every level, bachelor, master and doctoral, work on their own projects outside the curriculum. It provides project space, a makerspace with machine training, coaching, workshops and seed funding. Two sites carry it: SPH Zentrum on Clausiusstrasse and SPH Hönggerberg in the HPZ building.
The approach, find a real need, design a solution, test the assumption on an actual prototype, matches how we develop methodology. For us the SPH is therefore the link into an environment where methodological ideas get tested early and in practice, rather than first in a client project.
Focus areas
- Prototyping environment and makerspace at ETH Zurich
- Student projects outside the curriculum
- Coaching, workshops and seed funding
The databases and software we work with
openLCA and ecoinvent belong to our methodological stack. We use openLCA as our modelling software and ecoinvent as our background database. Both are central to the method and can be referenced traceably in audit trails, programme verifications and CSRD data points.
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openLCA Open source LCA software · our primary modelling tool GreenDelta · Berlin LCA modelling · software
openLCA is freely available open source software for life cycle assessment. It is developed by GreenDelta and used in research, industry and consulting. The software supports the common LCA standards, the GHG Protocol Product Standard and PEF.
At ecoverity we model primarily in openLCA. That keeps models transparent, reviewable and independent of long-term commercial tool contracts. For EPDs that have to be maintained or updated across several years, that matters a great deal.
Focus areas
- A transparent, auditable model structure
- Connection to a range of LCI background databases
- Data export in ILCD+EPD and EcoSpold formats
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ecoinvent Our primary LCI background database for material and energy flows ecoinvent Association · Zurich LCI background data · material and energy flows
ecoinvent is one of the most widely used background databases for life cycle assessment in the world. It contains material, energy and process data sets from many sectors and is developed and maintained by the ecoinvent Association in Zurich.
At ecoverity we use ecoinvent as the central background database for general material and energy flows. Where programme requirements call for it, we combine ecoinvent with product-specific foreground data and suitable programme-compliant data sets, such as ÖKOBAUDAT for EPDs in the DACH market.
Focus areas
- A background database for material, energy and process data
- Consistent method across system models such as cut-off, APOS and consequential
- Traceable versioning for audits and later updates
Would you like to become a partner?
We talk the overlap through with you. The partners that make sense for us are research groups, software providers and consultancies with a complementary scope.