Draft guidance and resource documents

Embodied carbon tool in residential foundations – draft

This tool provides a simple, high-level assessment of embodied carbon in residential foundations. It is intended to help engineers to consistently compare multiple residential foundation options. The tool can assist Engineering New Zealand members to demonstrate how they have considered reasonably foreseeable environmental effects and sustainable management, as required by CPEng Rule 47.

The tool is provided as a starting point for analysis. The spreadsheet template may be adapted to suit project-specific conditions, practice requirements, updated embodied carbon data, or alternative foundation systems.

The output is not intended to be an in-depth life-cycle assessment or to produce absolute embodied carbon values. Several significant assumptions are made to keep the tool easy to use.

Members are encouraged to provide feedback on the tool and user guide. In particular:

• Technical inaccuracies or errors.
• Matters requiring clarification (in the tool or user guide).
• Significant omissions or assumptions that affect the tool’s practical application.
• Issues that may create ambiguity or unintended interpretation.

Feedback is requested by 30 July 2026

Draft documents

Structural design consent documentation – final draft

Building Consent Authorities (BCAs) in New Zealand receive applications from engineers with varying levels of experience and different design office practices. There are currently 67 BCAs, each with its own set of requirements. However, all of them must determine, based on reasonable grounds, that a building will meet the performance standards of the Building Code. Therefore, it’s crucial that the information submitted to BCAs is easy to understand and quick to review.