The PCFGuideline
The gold standard for calculating
the carbon footprint of yourchemical products

Together for Sustainability (TfS) – a joint
sustainability initiative of global chemicalcompanies – is launching a step-by-step guideto help chemical suppliers more precisely calculate
the carbon footprint of their products – ProductCarbon Footprint (PCF) – in a way that isharmonised across the industry.
It’s called the PCF Guideline.
The first of its kind for the chemical industry,
the PCF Guideline offers specific guidance on PCF
calculation requirements unique to the industry,building on commonly used international standards
for Greenhouse Gas (GHG) accounting.

What is the PCF Guideline?
An interactive .pdf, it is a step-by-step instruction guide foruse by both chemical suppliers and corporations. Specificto calculating chemical product carbon footprints, the PCF
Guideline increases transparency in chemical supply chains andreduces complexity in emissions data tracking – thanks to theharmonised calculation approach.
The PCF Guideline supports the calculation of GHG emissions ofproducts and services used during a chemical’s lifecycle, until it
is delivered to the end user – from “cradle to gate”.

How to use the PCF Guideline

Until now, chemical PCFs were determined using genericinformation based on existing industry-agnostic standards
that lack specific calculation guidance for chemical materials.
The resulting PCFs therefore were not comparable to othercompanies’ calculation results for the same products. The PCF
Guideline offers an industry-specific, tailored solution with a moredetailed description and interpretation of existing standards.

The PCF Guideline comes in an easily navigable, interactive .pdf
format, so you can jump directly to the section that best applies toyour company.

Reviewed by top standardisation bodies, TfS’ PCF Guideline iscompliant with both ISO quality management standards andthe GHG Protocol accounting standards.

The PCF Guideline is open source and will be easily accessible on
TfS’ website beginning in autumn 2022.

How it can benefit you
As a supplier, you require easy-to-use guidance to accurately
calculate your PCFs to share with corporate customers. The PCF
Guideline makes it easy for you to generate these PCFs and foryour customers to integrate them into their emissions reporting.
By using the PCF Guideline, you can:• Easily calculate your chemical PCFs – improving
efficiency and reducing the amount of time spent using genericguidelines thanks to more specific guidance• Gain a better understanding of the GHG emissions
associated with your products – helping you improve youremissions tracking and sustainability performance and reachyour reduction targets• Create a basis to work with your own suppliers –enabling you to drive sustainability upstream in your value chain• Report your PCFs to the level of specificity manycustomers are requesting – decreasing resources required,increasing customer satisfaction and generating new sales

1 Upstream GHG emissions from the production of purchased goods and services.
2	Source: CDP, “Running Hot - Accelerating Europe’s path to Paris” (page 31).

Within the PCF Guideline, you will find key calculation criteria andinstructions for developing your chemical PCFs. Once calculated,
you can provide these PCFs to your corporate customers so they
may more accurately calculate their Scope 3.1 emissions1.

Why is this important right now?
Climate change is a well-known threat to our planet and to thefuture of business. Companies around the world are taking action
to reduce GHG emissions in support of the Paris Agreement goal
to limit global warming to well below 2°C.
The chemical industry is accountable for a high-level of global
GHG emissions, 77% of which are in Scope 32. As corporations
set stronger sustainability targets, they are increasingly looking tobuild more sustainable supply chains and reduce their associatedemissions.
As a chemical supplier, determining the carbon footprint of yourproducts provides the best product-level information for theidentification, tracking and reduction of these Scope 3 emissions.
By providing accurate chemical PCFs to your corporate
customers, you can help them to accurately report their emissions
and advance sustainability in the chemical industry.

To download the PCF Guideline and learn more
about how you can play your part in creating asustainable chemical supply chain, visit:
tfs-initiative.com/scope-3-ghg-emissions