We couldn’t find a suitable tool to measure whole life carbon on projects. So we made one ourselves.
Our industry needs to rapidly decarbonise, and architects are under increasing pressure to deliver low-carbon building solutions - as well as to evidence those claims with robust data. Yet for small practices, finding a carbon tool that fits real-world workflows has often been an uphill battle. Available tools can be prohibitively costly, complex, or too generic to be truly useful.
At Studio Bark, we faced the same challenge. We needed a tool that was affordable, intuitive, and granular enough to capture our bespoke design approach, while integrating seamlessly into everyday design processes.
When we couldn’t find our perfect tool, we decided to build it ourselves.
Why we're developing our own carbon tool
The built environment contributes around 39% of the UK’s total carbon emissions. If we’re serious about reducing our carbon emissions, whole life carbon assessments must become a core part of how projects are designed, assessed, and delivered.
Yet despite growing industry commitments (like the RIBA 2030 Climate Challenge and the emerging UK Net Zero Carbon Building Standard), there remains a gap in practical, accessible tools for the small and medium practices that make up 80% of the UK's architectural sector.
We have developed SmallCarbon™ specifically to fill this gap. It’s designed to help architects and designers integrate carbon assessment into live projects - simply, affordably, and accurately - supporting better design decisions without derailing project workflows.
How we've developed it
SmallCarbon™ has been shaped by real-world practice and extensive user feedback.
Building on over five years of carbon analysis at Studio Bark, we partnered with leading software developers Looper to transform in-house spreadsheets into a purpose-built, user-friendly platform. With support from Innovate UK’s Creative Catalyst programme, we gathered input from more than 90 small and medium architecture firms, ensuring the tool reflects the day-to-day realities and constraints of the industry.
Key features include:
- An intuitive web interface tailored to project workflows
- Easy data entry and instant, actionable outputs
- An extensive materials library based on ICE data and EPDs
- Reporting formats aligned with emerging industry standards
- Educational explainers embedded within the tool
What have we developed so far
The beta version of SmallCarbon™ has been trialed by a test group of ~ 20 small to medium sized architecture practices. Early feedback has been strong, with testers rating the user experience 8/10 on average and highlighting the tool’s clarity, speed, and usability. The tool integrates carbon calculations into early design stages, a vital stage for reducing the whole life carbon impact of a building.
The tool hosts an extensive materials library that includes alternative and natural materials such as hemp and straw that are otherwise overlooked in traditional tools, so that you can create truly representative carbon calculations. Build-ups can be created, saved, and compared for easy review of different material options.
SmallCarbon™ simplifies the process of Whole Life Carbon Analysis, generating outputs that not only improve internal design development, but also support planning applications, client communications, and marketing initiatives such as awards submissions. The tool empowers practices of all scales to make lower-carbon decisions earlier, without relying on costly external consultants, ultimately improving the standard of low-carbon design in the UK.
What next for SmallCarbon™?
We’re finalising refinements based on feedback from beta testing, preparing for full release.
The next phase will focus on:
- Final debugging and user-experience improvements
- Refining reporting formats
- Expanding educational content to support upskilling across teams
- Launching a flexible payment model to ensure the tool remains accessible to SMEs (including freemium and pay-per-project options)
By democratising carbon analysis, we aim to support a broader shift to embed whole life carbon analysis into everyday design culture and helping practices, clients, and the wider industry align around clear, achievable net zero targets.
Get Involved
If you're a practice, designer, educator, or client interested in using, testing, or supporting SmallCarbon™, we’d love to hear from you.
Join our mailing list to find out how you can get involved in SmallCarbon™ — and help us make whole life carbon assessment a core, accessible part of the future built environment:
- Be the first to hear about SmallCarbon™ when it launches
- Participate in our final round of beta testing and help shape the tool
- Stay updated on webinars, CPDs and training sessions coming soon
Together, we can make whole life carbon reporting standard practice — not a specialist service.
