A PCR sets the rules everyone in a product category follows when they calculate and report impacts: the declared or functional unit, the system boundary and which life cycle stages are included, the calculation rules, the indicators to report, and what else has to be disclosed. Without one, two declarations for the same kind of product are not built the same way and cannot be read against each other. Every EPD has to be based on a PCR that is valid when the EPD is published. Where no specific PCR covers a product, a broader Part A PCR or sector standard can be used on its own if its rules allow it; otherwise a new PCR has to be developed first.

An open stakeholder process, in seven broad steps: research to establish the need, a public call for participation, seating of a balanced committee, drafting, open consultation on the draft for at least 30 days, review by an independent PCR review panel, and publication. Before consultation, the committee reviews the complete draft and votes on releasing it. Consultation and the first round of panel review can run in parallel. Every comment received is addressed, and if the resulting changes are significant, the revised draft goes back to the panel. A PCR is published only once the panel has closed its comments and confirmed conformance, and the comments and their dispositions are published with it. Committee membership, balance, voting, consensus and conflicts of interest are governed by the PCR Committee Guidelines, published on our website.

Six things:

• Whether the scope genuinely covers your product, rather than something adjacent to it.
• The declared or functional unit, because that decides what your numbers get compared against.

• Which life cycle stages are mandatory, and which standard the PCR follows, such as ISO 21930 or EN 15804, since that affects which markets the EPD can serve.

• How much of its validity period is left. Your EPD has to be published while the PCR is still valid, so an expiry or a new version part way through your project affects your timeline.

• Who developed it. A rule written by a balanced committee, with public consultation and independent review, carries more weight than one written narrowly. If it comes from another program operator, we have to recognize it before your project starts.

• What data it requires, including any rules on primary data, averaging across products or sites, and additional information you have to declare.

A published declaration stays valid for the period printed on it, even after its PCR is updated or replaced. The exception is a PCR withdrawn because of an error that affects EPD results, in which case we review the affected EPDs with their owners. What changes is the rule for new declarations. When a new PCR version is published, the previous version can still be used only for EPDs published within the transition period stated in the new version, which by default is 90 days for a minor version and 180 days for a major version. When you renew or extend your EPD, it is verified against the current PCR.

Smart EPD PCRs are valid for five years. No later than four months before a PCR expires, we post it for a 30-day public comment period and review the comments with the PCR sponsor and, where relevant, the original review panel and our Technical Advisory Board. The outcome may be an extension of up to one year, an editorial correction, an update that aligns the PCR with the program instructions or a revised standard without changing its method, a targeted amendment, or a full revision. Amendments and revisions go through open consultation and independent panel review; corrections and updates do not go back to the panel.

Yes, where the other program operator’s instructions conform to ISO 14025 and do not conflict with ours, and the PCR was developed and reviewed in accordance with ISO 14025, ISO/TS 14027 and ISO 14044, and with any applicable sector standard such as ISO 21930, EN 15804 or IEC 63366. We review the external PCR first, looking at its development, consultation and review record and at whether its method is consistent with our rules. Name the PCR when you scope the project, so we can review it and set up the template before the project is created. Recognition applies to a specific PCR version, which has to be valid when your EPD is published, and your EPD still has to meet our program rules, including verification by an independent verifier we assign. A manufacturer already working to a rule published elsewhere does not have to start their category again.

Talk to us before the LCA starts, because your EPD has to be based on a PCR that is valid on the day the EPD is published, not the day the project starts. Expiry is managed rather than sudden. Most Smart EPD PCRs are valid for five years, and no later than four months before one expires, we open it for public comment and decide whether to extend its validity by up to a year, update it or revise it. A PCR that expires without being extended or replaced is de-listed and cannot be used for new EPDs. For a PCR from another program operator, that operator’s validity dates apply; where an external PCR has expired, Smart EPD can adapt or redevelop it at a sponsor’s request. The PCR library shows rules under review, open for consultation and in draft as well as published ones, and keeps expired rules listed with their status, so you can see where a replacement stands. For an EPD already published against a rule that changes, see “What happens to my EPD when the PCR it was built on is updated?”