Any bid review will reveal a growing requirement: every load of concrete, ton of rebar and pane of flat glass must be accompanied by a facility-specific, third-
Any bid review will reveal a growing requirement: every load of concrete, ton of rebar and pane of flat glass must be accompanied by a facility-specific, third-party-verified Environmental Product Declaration that meets a global warming potential limit. As each bid submittal deadline approaches, many contractors find themselves scrambling to validate, compare and manage those documents.
The challenge is less about sustainability than documentation. Increasingly, the contractors with reliable EPD workflows are the ones best positioned to win the work.
The challenge is less about sustainability than documentation. Increasingly, the contractors with reliable EPD workflows are the ones best positioned to win the work.
WHAT AN EPD TELLS YOU AND WHAT IT DOESN'T
Before building a process, it helps to know what an EPD is used for. An Environmental Product Declaration is a standardized, third-party-verified report of a product's life-cycle environmental impact, most importantly its embodied carbon, or the product's carbon footprint from production through end of life.
An EPD is a standardized environmental report that helps compare products based on their environmental impact, making it one data point in the procurement process.
THE MARKET IS MOVING FASTER THAN THE MANDATE
The push for EPDs is no longer coming primarily from government agencies. While the federal label program funded under the Inflation Reduction Act stalled after Congress rescinded its unobligated funding in the 2025 budget reconciliation law, demand for EPDs continues to grow through state programs, private development and institutional construction projects.
Now regions that may not even have state laws are beholden to their clients. Big tech, advanced manufacturing, healthcare, universities and banks increasingly require EPDs no matter the location.
WHERE EPDS TRIP UP CONTRACTORS: THE WORKFLOW GAP
Requirements surface at bidding or submittal, and without a process, someone burns billable hours chasing PDFs from suppliers, guessing whether an industry-average declaration satisfies a facility-specific clause and rebuilding the file every time a material changes. Without a compliant EPD, contractors risk approval delays, payment issues and lost bidding opportunities.
The challenge becomes more complicated once materials change during construction. A supplier substitution driven by cost or availability can leave project teams with documentation that no longer aligns with the installed product, creating exposure that may not be discovered until well after the work is complete.
BUILD THE PROCESS BEFORE IT’S NEEDED
Early adopters bid faster and cleaner. A basic readiness plan:
- Estimating: Flag EPD requirements during bid review. Confirm whether the spec demands facility-specific or industry-average declarations, and price the compliant supply.
- Procurement: Require EPDs as a condition of purchase orders, to prevent having to track them down later. Maintain a pre-vetted supplier list with current, verified documents.
- Field and PM: Assign a single owner to the EPD record. Log every substitution and pull the matching EPD before the material ships.
- Documentation: Store declarations in a single searchable location linked to the submittal package and track expiration dates.
Software can automate collection and comparison, and the tools have improved fast. Even so, clear ownership and a written standard are what keeps a substitution from becoming a compliance gap.
Five years ago, the conversation around EPDs would have centered on sustainability goals. But today, the discussion could easily include submittal deadlines, supplier documentation and material substitutions.
Environmental requirements continue to evolve across the construction industry. Find expert perspectives on compliance, sustainability and operational best practices at CONEXPO-CON/AGG News.
