
Life Cycle In the modern industrial landscape, digitalization has emerged as a key driver in improving sustainability and fostering a circular economy. By leveraging advanced digital tools and data-centric strategies, companies can enhance transparency, optimize resource usage, and contribute to Life Cycle global efforts in reducing environmental impact. Covestro, a leading manufacturer of high-quality polymer materials, is actively embracing digital transformation to achieve greater efficiency in its operations and provide customers with comprehensive transparency regarding its products.
A Data-Driven Approach to Environmental Impact Assessment
To accurately measure and manage its climate impact, Covestro Life Cycle has integrated digital tools into its Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) processes. The Life Cycle company has now enabled automated calculations for the product carbon footprint (PCF) of approximately 50,000 finished products, covering the entire manufacturing journey from cradle to gate. This automation significantly enhances efficiency and reliability, allowing for consistent and up-to-date environmental impact assessments.

The methodology used for these automated LCA calculations, including the PCF assessments, has been certified by TÜV Rheinland, an internationally recognized certification body. This Life Cycle certification confirms that Covestro’s approach aligns with globally accepted ISO standards and adheres to the sustainability principles outlined in the Together for Sustainability (TfS) initiative. These standards ensure that the data produced is not only precise but also comparable across different organizations within the chemical industry.
Enhancing Efficiency Through Digitalization
According to Dr. Torsten Heinemann, Global Head Life Cycle of Group Innovation and Sustainability at Covestro, digitalization enables the collection and processing of large data sets in an automated manner. This eliminates the need for cumbersome manual data handling, such as using Excel spreadsheets for calculations. The automation of LCA data processing ensures that changes occurring at production sites are quickly reflected in environmental assessments, significantly improving accuracy and efficiency.
Furthermore, digitalization serves as the foundation for seamless data exchange across the Life Cycle value chain. Covestro’s LCA data can be integrated into industry-wide digital platforms like Catena-X and SiGreen, facilitating transparent and standardized data sharing with partners both upstream and downstream. By establishing a harmonized framework for environmental impact data exchange, Covestro supports collective sustainability efforts within the chemical industry.
Providing Customers with Environmental Impact Insights
In addition to calculating the PCF, Covestro is committed to offering customers a Life Cycle broader range of LCA data for the products they purchase. By making detailed environmental impact data available, the company empowers its customers to assess their own carbon footprint more accurately and implement measures to reduce emissions within their operations. This approach enhances sustainability efforts across the entire value chain, as businesses can make more informed decisions regarding material sourcing and product development.
To ensure the reliability of its environmental assessments, Covestro gathers input data from multiple sources. Raw material impact data is collected directly from suppliers or sourced from reputable external databases. Meanwhile, operational data such as energy consumption, waste generation, and emissions are extracted from Covestro’s Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems, including SAP. By leveraging real-time and verified data, Covestro ensures the highest level of accuracy in its sustainability reporting.
Scaling Up Digital LCA Initiatives
Covestro’s journey toward digital LCA assessments began in mid-2023, when the Life Cycle company first announced its plan to automate environmental impact calculations. Within a year, Covestro has successfully achieved its target of covering around 50,000 products in its database. Moving forward, these LCA datasets will be updated annually, ensuring that the assessments remain relevant and aligned with the latest operational and industry developments.
This milestone positions Covestro ahead of the current market standard, reinforcing its leadership in promoting digitalization and sustainability. By continuously refining its methodologies and expanding its LCA coverage, Covestro is setting a new benchmark for transparency and responsible business practices within the chemical industry.
The Role of Collaboration in Advancing the Circular Economy
A truly circular economy can only be realized through collective action and collaboration across the entire supply chain. Covestro recognizes the importance of industry partnerships in driving meaningful progress and enhancing sustainability efforts. The company actively engages with its suppliers to obtain detailed environmental impact data for raw materials. At the same time, it provides its customers with accurate LCA insights to support their sustainability goals.
Beyond individual business partnerships, Covestro is also actively involved in industry-wide initiatives such as the Together for Sustainability (TfS) program. By participating in these collaborative platforms, the company helps establish standardized methodologies for environmental impact assessments across the chemical industry. This standardization ensures that sustainability data is more consistent and comparable, enabling companies to collectively track progress toward climate goals.
Data Sharing as a Driver for Transparency and Impact Reduction
Sharing LCA data is instrumental in fostering a culture of transparency and accountability across the industry. By making environmental impact information more accessible, Covestro encourages all stakeholders—including suppliers, customers, and industry partners—to work together in identifying opportunities for reducing emissions and optimizing resource utilization.
A well-integrated data-sharing ecosystem allows companies to adopt a proactive approach to sustainability. By leveraging comprehensive LCA insights, businesses can make informed decisions about material selection, production processes, and supply chain strategies. This, in turn, contributes to lowering greenhouse gas emissions, minimizing environmental footprint, and advancing broader sustainability objectives.
Covestro’s Commitment to Climate Neutrality and Sustainable Growth
As a global leader in polymer materials,Covestro is fully committed to aligning its business operations with the principles of a circular economy. The company has set ambitious sustainability targets, including achieving climate neutrality for its Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions by 2035. Additionally, Covestro aims to reach climate neutrality for its Scope 3 emissions—those generated throughout its value chain—by 2050.
Covestro’s sustainability-driven initiatives are reflected in its financial and operational growth. In the fiscal year 2023, the company generated sales of EUR 14.4 billion and maintained a global presence with 48 production sites. With approximately 17,500 employees (calculated as full-time equivalents), Covestro continues to drive innovation and spearhead industry-wide efforts toward sustainability.