FCSI UK&I is proud to release The Palace Framework – a practical, phased roadmap for measuring and reducing embodied and operational carbon in commercial catering equipment. Created by a working group of leading consultants and sustainability experts, the framework gives our industry the tools it needs to respond to growing client demand, policy pressure, and the urgent need for carbon transparency.
Download the framework, here:
Developed collaboratively over the past year, the framework provides consultants, manufacturers, and clients with consistent guidance on how to calculate, compare, and ultimately reduce the environmental impact of kitchen equipment. It outlines a three-phase approach:
- Embodied carbon assessments and material transparency using the CIBSE TM65 methodology
- Operational carbon estimates and logistics emissions
- Real-world monitoring and lifecycle analysis for continuous improvement
The need for standardization
“This framework means consultants and end-users can start benchmarking on embodied carbon,” says Danny Potter FCSI of Invito Design, who chairs the FCSI’s new sustainability committee. “It doesn’t claim to be perfect. But it’s a line in the sand – something the industry can agree on and improve over time.”
The need for standardization has become increasingly urgent. Clients – including local authorities, education providers and developers – are beginning to require carbon assessments at tender stage, but consultants and dealers have lacked clear guidance on how to respond. The Palace Framework fills that gap with a shared methodology designed to be collaborative, inclusive and workable at scale.
FCSI Senior Associate Lauren Hunter, technical advisor on the report, praised the spirit of collaboration that led to the report’s publication. “To sit in a room with these consultants and see everyone just get on with it, openly sharing IP for the greater good – I’ve never seen anything like it. I’m really proud to have been part of that.”
Crucially, the framework has been developed with manufacturers in mind, ensuring it aligns with real-world production processes and supply chains. It recommends that manufacturers begin with TM65 assessments and move toward Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) over time. “The industry is at the point where we need to agree a structure,” says Potter. “Our hope is that embodied carbon assessment becomes a standard deliverable – not a special one. It isn’t as complicated as people think.”
The need for data
As Paul Arnold, F&B project director at Tricon Food Consultants points out, the Framework’s recommendations are not onerous. “The big point that needs to be made here is that we’re not asking for a carbon amount to be below or under criteria,” he says. “We are just asking for that data – it doesn’t matter what it is.”
Ed Bircham FCSI, director at Humble Arnold Associates, says the framework directly reflects a changing mood within the industry: “We’re all being asked to deliver projects where embodied carbon and other sustainability stats are required. A handful of manufacturers offer that information. Those that don’t are starting to lose out on contracts.”
Gareth Sefton, managing owner of SHW Design, agrees: “As consultants, and for our end users, we need to have embodied carbon figures to compare manufacturers. Client demands, plus any further governance, will determine how quickly the sector puts a higher emphasis on sustainability.”
FCSI UK&I acknowledges this is just the beginning. The Palace Framework is intended as a working document – open to iteration, input, and evolution. As Hunter notes, “Nobody knows exactly what ‘good’ looks like yet. But this gives us a structure, a starting point – and a way to make better choices.”
Further details:
For more information, visit fcsi.org.uk.
Sam Noble
