Empowering Product-Level Climate Action: forward earth's carbon footprint software

forward earth's carbon footprint software

As climate commitments grow stronger and regulations tighten, companies are increasingly seeking reliable ways to measure the environmental impact of their products. Yet for many - especially those with diverse or complex product lines - getting clear, actionable emissions data at the product level is still a major challenge. forward earth’s carbon footprint software is designed to help organizations bridge this gap, combining powerful AI with flexible data integration to generate precise, product-specific emissions insights at scale.

The Challenge: Scaling Product Footprint Assessments Across Diverse Catalogs

When assessing the carbon footprint of a product, companies have traditionally relied on average activity-based data, often in combination with estimates. This method can be a useful starting point, particularly when granular data is unavailable, and it's often used because of its simplicity and accessibility. However, for companies aiming to go deeper - whether to meet supplier-level targets, respond to growing customer expectations, or prepare for evolving disclosure requirements - higher-resolution data is essential. That’s especially true for organizations managing extensive product portfolios, where current methods may not capture the full nuance of materials, manufacturing, and supply chains.

Our Solution: AI-Enhanced, Data-Rich Product Carbon Footprints

forward earth offers a smarter way forward. Our AI-powered tool ingests multiple types of data - including bill of materials (BoM), ERP systems, utility bills, and logistics records - to produce accurate carbon footprint estimates at the product level. These calculations are powered by private and proprietary emissions factor databases as well as supplier-specific emission factors, delivering a level of specificity that average activity-based methods cannot always provide. The platform integrates directly with your existing software ecosystem, reducing the need for manual data wrangling and accelerating time-to-value. Our AI-powered engine can kickstart assessments even when data is incomplete using a proprietary “outside-in” methodology. It leverages databases, PCF blueprints, and large language models (LLMs) to estimate emissions for a wide range of product types. Once this initial footprint is created, companies can progressively refine their results using internal data, supplier inputs, and upstream insights - iteratively increasing the accuracy and confidence in every assessment. And the benefits don’t stop at your own operations - our solution enables collaboration with suppliers, allowing companies to replace generic assumptions with more accurate, supplier-specific emissions data.

Key Benefits

• Bulk PCF Assessments: Handle large datasets across multiple product lines while maintaining data quality and consistency
• Preliminary PCF’s: Conduct preliminary PCF’s even with incomplete data using our “outside-in” methodology
• Primary data collection: collect primary data from your suppliers or give them free access to a supplier PCF tool, enabling them to calculate primary data
• Continuous Improvement: Easily update product assessments as new supplier or operational data becomes available.
• Hotspot & Lifecycle Analysis: Identify emissions drivers across components, stages, or inputs to enable prioritization of your decarbonisation efforts
• Scenario Modeling: Test the impact of switching suppliers, materials, or energy sources to uncover viable decarbonization pathways
• Standards-Aligned: Our tool supports interoperability with global frameworks like ISO 14067, Pact Pathfinder, and Catena-X, helping ensure your data aligns with the latest best practices
• Data Quality Ranking: Data quality improves as more inputs become available - from BoM data to logistics, energy usage, and supplier-specific emissions. Our software continuously evaluates Data Quality Scores, aligning with recognized frameworks like the GHG Protocol and ISO 14067
• Supplier Engagement: Suppliers can submit their own PCFs, which are validated for compatibility (e.g., system boundary alignment, cradle-to-gate vs. cradle-to-grave). Our Knowledge Graph dynamically maps supplier inputs to finished products, supporting traceability and improved data granularity

From Estimation to Action

Average activity-based data and estimates have served as a valuable first step for many organizations - but as the sustainability landscape evolves, so does the need for greater resolution and transparency. forward earth’s solution empowers businesses to take that next step with confidence. Whether you're looking to improve internal decision-making, respond to customer requests, or prepare for reporting under new product-level climate disclosure frameworks, our software equips you with the data and insights you need. Move beyond approximation. Start measuring what truly matters - product by product.