Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) Practitioner

To combat man-made climate change, the concentration of greenhouse gases in the earth‘s atmosphere must be reduced. To this end, it must be possible to compare emissions at product level. The preconditions and calculation methods have been transferred by standardisation bodies at global level into the ISO 14060 series of standards.

Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) practitioners are responsible for calculating greenhouse gas emissions at product level in all phases of the life cycle in accordance with ISO 14067.

The calculation of greenhouse gas emissions and compliance with the generally recognised rules of technology requires appropriate specialist knowledge (professional training and professional experience) of the persons carrying out the task. These persons must be able to always provide evidence of their required qualification.

Carbon Action developed a course to equip carbon professionals to conduct product carbon foot printing in line with the ISO 14067 standard. Carbon Action’s content is augmented by a certification scheme DINplus, administered by DIN CERTCO. Professionals can learn the subject matter from the Carbon Action course and then proceed to attain professional certification as a PCF Practitioner from DIN CERTCO. That certification is recognised and valued globally. Global recognition is important given the adoption of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) in the Europea Union.

CBAM will make knowing the embedded carbon in products into a competitive advantage – for companies both inside and outside the EU. That in turn will create the need for expertise in the area, as well as credibility in both compiling and verifying, the accuracy of PCF assertions. The joint scheme also benefitted from consultation with outside bodies, including Fresh Coast Inc (a US based PCF consultancy) and the UK based Carbon Accounting Alliance (CAA) among others. CAA’s mission is to raise the standards and advance the boundaries of the carbon accounting profession and see this course as a key piece of the intellectual infrastructure needed to achieve that aim.

Sustainability practitioners, consultants, auditors, engineers or other experts in emissions calculation have the opportunity to prove their qualification to their clients by means of a certificate from DIN CERTCO. Only the "PCF Practitioner" is authorised to use the "DINplus" quality mark as proof of their expertise.

Your advantages at a glance

• Increase confidence in your expertise by external validation.
• Benefit from the high reputation of the DIN brand at home and abroad.
• The certificate, the personalised ID card and the central inclusion in the DIN CERTCO database ensure maximum transparency.
• Secure market and competitive advantages when awarding (public) contracts.
• Provide HR managers in your company with a decision-making aid.
• Use personal certification as proof of further training as part of a QM system.
• Confirm that your knowledge and that of your employees is up to date.

The DIN CERTCO certification scheme "Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) Practitioner", which was created in cooperation with the DIN CERTCO-recognised training partner Occupli Ltd. and the CAA association, describes the certification requirements. The following documents form the basis for the training, examination and certification:

• DIN EN ISO 14067
• AR6 Synthesis Report: Climate Change 2023; IPCC, 2023

All participants must provide evidence of at least 2 years of relevant professional experience (see certification scheme for more details).

Proof of theoretical expertise and practical skills is provided in the form of a written examination.

If the examination results are assessed positively by DIN CERTCO, the "PCF Practitioner" receives a certificate that is valid for 5 years. In addition, they receive the right to use the DINplus quality mark and an ID card to document their qualification on site. The DINplus certificate confirms the qualification to independently calculate the product-specific greenhouse gases in accordance with DIN EN ISO 14067.

The registration number for the unique identification of the "PCF Practitioner" has the following structure: PZ-PCF-000.

During the validity of the certificate, the "PCF Practitioner" must regularly demonstrate that he is applying his knowledge and skills in the relevant field. After expiry of the validity of the certificate, the validity of the certificate can be extended for a further 5 years at the request of the certificate holder, provided that the requirements for this are met.

Individuals can use personal certification to emphasise their competence and demonstrate it in a comprehensible manner. As part of a quality management system, personal certification can be helpful in fulfilling the "qualification" element. With the certificate, the specialist can also demonstrate that their knowledge of emission calculation standards and regulations is always "up to date" - this creates trust!