LCA Portfolio blocks: canvas reference

This guide is the canvas-side reference for Dcycle’s LCA Portfolio: every block type, what it represents, the fields it expects, and when it applies. Use it while you build — not before. For the pre-Dcycle data collection checklist (resource templates and pre-flight prep), see Starting an LCA in Dcycle: data collection checklist.

Which blocks apply to which scope

Block	Cradle-to-gate	Gate-to-grave	Cradle-to-grave
Material	✓	✓	✓
Process	✓	✓	✓
Product	✓	✓	✓
Transport (optional, AI-prefilled)	✓	✓	✓
Distribution		✓	✓
Product Use		✓	✓
End-of-Life			✓

Material block

A container for one or more material/energy/waste resources used at the same point in the flow. For each resource in the block:

• Resource (from the Resource Manager)
• Quantity consumed per functional unit
• Unit (kg, litres, kWh, m³, m², units…) — must match the resource’s emission factor unit

Process block

For each process step:

• Process name and country (already created as a resource)
• Reference output — name, quantity, unit (e.g. “1 kg of moulded part”, “100 units assembled”)
• Inputs by category: raw materials, energy, consumption, waste, sub-processes
• Quantity and unit per input, per reference output

Product block

The final product of the portfolio:

• Reference to the product resource
• Total quantity produced in the reporting period (used for per-unit results)

Transport block (optional)

Logistics between two points — most commonly supplier → factory, factory → warehouse.

Transport is optional. If you don’t have the data, Dcycle AI will prefill the routes automatically based on the supplier and process country/address you provided on each resource. The result is an estimate using sensible defaults (typical carrier for the route, calculated distance). If transport is material to your footprint or you have better data, override it.

If you do want to provide details, gather per route:

• Origin (address, postal code, country — usually from the source resource)
• Destination (address, postal code, country)
• Distance in km (Dcycle can calculate this from addresses, or you can enter it manually)
• TOC (Type of Carrier): aircraft, lorry, van, train, container ship — plus refrigerated variants
• Mass transported per functional unit

Distribution block (cradle-to-grave / gate-to-grave only)

Final product delivery to customers. Skip this block if your LCA is cradle-to-gate — that scope ends at factory exit, so distribution isn’t included.

• Destination (address, postal code, country)
• Units sold in the reporting period
• Weight per unit (or total weight)
• Weight type — material or product
• TOC (carrier type)
• Distance in km

Product Use block (cradle-to-grave / gate-to-grave only)

Resources the product consumes during its useful life at the customer’s site — electricity, water, fuel. Required for energy-using products (appliances, vehicles, lights, HVAC, electronics) and products that consume water or fuel in use.

Field	Required	Notes
Lifespan	Required	Quantity + unit — years, months, weeks, or days of expected useful life
Electricity	Optional	If the product uses electricity: quantity, unit, and frequency (all_life, yearly, monthly, weekly, daily)
Water	Optional	Same shape — quantity, unit, frequency
Combustion	Optional	Same shape + fuel type: petrol, gas_natural, or diesel

Skip this block entirely if your product doesn’t consume anything during use (e.g. furniture, packaging, raw materials sold onward).

End-of-Life block (cradle-to-grave only)

What happens to each material (or to the whole product) after the customer is done with it. Required for cradle-to-grave; not needed for gate-to-grave if your scope cuts off before disposal.

For every material in your bill of materials (or for the product as a whole):

Field	Required	Notes
Item	Required	Material or product the row applies to
Type	Required	material or product
Country	Required	Where the end-of-life treatment happens
Treatment	Required	One of: recycling, incineration, landfill, composting, industry_average
Percentage	Required	% of the item going to this treatment — all rows for one item must sum to 100%
Sub-treatments	Optional	Break a treatment down further (e.g. recycling 60% mechanical / 40% chemical) — sub-percentages must also sum to 100% within the parent treatment

Connecting blocks

Connections define the flow of materials between blocks: a connection goes from a source block to a target block. Common patterns:

Material ──▶ Process ──▶ Product ──▶ Distribution
   │            │
   ▼            ▼
Transport    Transport

• Material → Process — raw materials flow into a manufacturing step
• Material → Transport → Process — materials are transported to the factory
• Process → Product — the process output becomes the final product
• Product → Distribution — the product is delivered to customers (gate-to-grave / cradle-to-grave)

A block can have multiple sources (a Process with several Material inputs) and multiple targets (a Material block supplying two Processes).

Calculating impacts

Once blocks are configured and connections drawn, hit Calculate. Dcycle traces material flows through every connection and applies emission factors at each stage. Results show totals per environmental category (climate change, acidification, eutrophication, water scarcity, etc.) plus per-block and per-resource breakdowns.

Unmapped resources don’t contribute to the calculation — make sure all resources show Mapped status in the Resource Manager before calculating.

What’s next

• Starting an LCA in Dcycle: data collection checklist — the data you need to gather before opening the canvas

If your product or process doesn’t fit the standard blocks, contact your Customer Success contact — the LCA team can advise on the right modelling approach.