Horizon 2020 SME

Key Features of Cradle-to-Gate:

• Cradle: Refers to the extraction of raw materials or the beginning of the product’s lifecycle.
• Gate: Refers to the point when the product leaves the manufacturing facility, ready for delivery.

This model includes:

1. Raw Material Footprint: Emissions from sourcing and producing raw materials.
2. Transportation Footprint: Emissions from transporting raw materials to the production site.
3. Production Footprint: Emissions from manufacturing processes.

Exclusions: Cradle-to-Gate does not include downstream processes like product use, end-of-life disposal, or recycling.

Advantages of Cradle-to-Gate Calculations:

• Provides a focused view of the manufacturing process’s environmental impact.
• Aligns well with suppliers and manufacturers who are responsible for the production phase only.
• Easier to calculate and verify compared to full lifecycle assessments (Cradle-to-Grave or Cradle-to-Cradle).