The future of LCA: SimaPro & One Click LCA

Science and scalability will reshape carbon sustainability intelligence across industries

Life-cycle assessment is entering a new phase of maturity. The merger of SimaPro into One Click LCA marks the point where rigorous science meets technological capability, aligning deep methodological expertise with automation, AI and supply chain data. Together, this signals a shift toward universal access to reliable impact data — the foundation of every credible decarbonization and sustainability strategy.

Life‑cycle assessment (LCA) has quietly matured into one of the defining tools of the decarbonization era. Once the preserve of a few specialists, it is becoming a daily requirement across construction, manufacturing, and product supply chains — from chemicals, to medical equipment, to fast-moving consumer goods. Tightening regulation, investor scrutiny, and growing customer demand for verified data are forcing the method into the mainstream.

Against this backdrop, the combination of One Click LCA and SimaPro marks a structural shift. It unites scientific depth with technological capability, offering the LCA community a platform that is both rigorous and scalable. Together, the merger promises best in class models and data for experts and faster workflows and scalability for business users — a pairing designed to meet the demands of a world in urgent need of reliable carbon and sustainability impact data.

For users, little changes overnight. SimaPro and One Click LCA remain distinct products, each optimized for different audiences, but now strengthened by shared databases, joint investment in cloud services, and aligned quality programs.

The roadmap centers on four priorities — user‑friendliness, scalability, extended capabilities, and robustness — all intended to reduce manual effort and expand access to trustworthy data. Supplier‑specific data, expanded databases, and new tools for analytics and reporting are already in motion, ensuring that both products evolve in tandem while retaining their individual strengths.

LCA is coming of age

LCA is no longer just an academic research exercise. Across Europe, regulations such as the Construction Products Regulation (CPR), the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD), and the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR) now demand whole‑life carbon disclosure. Investors, policies, and clients expect transparent, verifiable data. 

Manufacturers, meanwhile, must publish and manage environmental product declarations (EPDs) at scale to stay competitive. Yet the pool of LCA practitioners remains limited — estimated at perhaps 20,000 in total — far too few to meet the billions of products requiring quantified environmental impact data. Automation, standardized models, and easy-to-use tools are therefore essential.

What the merger makes possible

The rationale for uniting One Click LCA and SimaPro can be summarized simply: Depth meets speed. SimaPro brings 35 years of scientific credibility and modeling precision. One Click LCA contributes technological capability, automation, regulatory alignment, and integrations with the software environments where designers, engineers, and manufacturers already work. Together, they can push LCA both deeper and faster, enabling high‑resolution modeling for experts and reasonable application for non‑specialists.

Data now flows in both directions. Components or products modelled with SimaPro can be shared as supply chain datasets for users of One Click LCA. Supplier and market data from One Click LCA can be selectively imported into SimaPro, allowing users to benefit from supply-chain specific data. Cloud‑based services will add analytics, reporting, and model‑sharing capabilities, reducing friction between research and execution.

The road ahead

The roadmap for SimaPro is anchored around four themes. First, user‑friendliness is enhanced: The interface and onboarding experience will be reworked to reduce time‑to‑value, especially for non‑expert users, while preserving the scientific core that professionals rely on. Second, scalability is improved: Automated data collection, integrations with ERP and PLM systems, and portfolio‑level reporting  will be shared between SimaPro and One Click LCA. Third, extended capabilities are added: Curated sectoral databases, supplier‑specific data solutions, and new analytics will help users identify hotspots and track improvements. Finally, robustness is preserved: Harmonized methods, transparent assumptions, and strong audit trails continue to reinforce trust in results.

Our philosophy is pragmatic. Two products will connect more deeply to serve two needs: high-resolution modeling and scalable implementation. Industry networks, educational offerings, and partner relationships continue uninterrupted. Accessibility of the products remains a priority, with education licenses and affordable licenses for developing markets ensuring that the next generation of LCA experts has the best tools possible at their disposal.

What this means in practice

For design and engineering teams, the merger means earlier and faster access to sustainability impact data. Design optimization and automated reporting will help firms establish carbon budgets and meet growing compliance obligations with less administrative burden. For manufacturers, it signals a new era of data governance: Automated EPD generation, integration with enterprise systems, and structured management of supplier data. For R&D and method developers, SimaPro remains the tool of choice — the place where new methods and datasets are built — but now supported by a connected ecosystem capable of taking those models to scale. The combined platform will provide the tools, data, and services to deliver actionable carbon insights, enable compliance, and drive sustainable growth across all industries — at planetary scale.

Science & scale to drive sustainable futures

The unification of One Click LCA and SimaPro is not about consolidation, but about coherence. It creates an ecosystem where scientific rigor and technological efficiency reinforce one another. For practitioners, it promises continuity; for new users, accessibility; for industry at large, a realistic path to scaling life‑cycle thinking. The aim is clear: to power one million makers of a zero‑carbon future by 2035 — not by simplifying LCA, but by making its precision available to everyone who needs it.

This article synthesizes themes and live audience questions from the October 2025 One Click LCA & SimaPro executive discussion with Panu Pasanen, CEO & Founder of One Click LCA, and Eric Mieras, Managing Director of PRé, the makers of Simapro. It is intended as a standalone explainer for practitioners, customers, users, manufacturers, and policy stakeholders. Watch the complete talk on YouTube here. 

Frequently asked questions

Will SimaPro and One Click LCA merge into one tool?

No. They remain separate but complementary. SimaPro continues as a generalist LCA platform with expert capabilities; One Click LCA remains the scalable SaaS platform for design and compliance, with focus on AEC and manufacturing. Over time, expect shared data services and optional cloud add-ons that bridge the two.

What does “SimaPro in the cloud” mean?

SimaPro Synergy is the new generation of SaaS-based SimaPro software, ready for enterprise scale. It already  enables online collaboration and governed model use for enterprise users, with a new offering for business users being launched in early 2026. At the same time, SimaPro Craft remains the desktop tool for the demanding LCA experts.

How will data flow between the platforms?

Two directions: Expert‑built component and product data from SimaPro can be reused in One Click LCA workflows in aggregated form, while aggregated supplier and EPD data from One Click LCA can enrich expert models. Provenance and verification status will always be visible.

What happens to current licenses and partners?

Current products and contracts continue. Customers continue working with their SimaPro resellers or account teams. If uncertain, you can always contact support@simapro.com for questions, and we’ll help you forward.

Will prices change?

Licensing stays product‑specific, and upcoming increases in database licenses from January 2026 onwards will be passed on to the users. To provide pricing stability, multi-year contracts with price locks will be made available.

Will One Click LCA’s supply chain data be visible in SimaPro?

Yes, but selectively. Relevant high‑quality datasets will be available for import based on sector and geography, avoiding unnecessary duplication or clutter.

Is supplier data visible at full inventory level?

No. Suppliers rarely disclose complete inventories. Aggregated datasets and emission factors can be accessed, but full inventory data remains the proprietary information of the suppliers, unless explicitly shared under contract.

Will R&D flexibility be reduced as the software evolves?

No. SimaPro Craft retains full flexibility for research and prospective studies. Tools oriented for business users in SimaPro Synergy and One Click LCA will coexist for large‑scale implementation.

How will AI be used?

Artificial intelligence will support data mapping, anomaly detection, modeling quality and consistency, and ecodesign discovery. It is a tool for efficiency, not a replacement for expertise, and all assumptions will remain transparent.

How does this support EU regulations like CPR, EPBD, and ESPR?

The combined platform provides product‑level and project‑level reporting aligned with EU requirements. Manufacturers can manage EPDs and Digital Product Passports (DPPs) at scale, while designers can run compliant whole‑building LCAs for EPBD and Level(s). At the same time, SimaPro will offer productized tools for ESPR.

Will education and access programs continue?

Yes. Education and research licenses remain available globally, with discounted or free access in defined markets to support skill development.

How should users decide which tool fits their needs?

Users in AEC and construction-related manufacturing industries and related education are recommended to use One Click LCA. Users in all other industries, as well as in LCA research and education, are recommended to use SimaPro. Within the SimaPro product family, SimaPro Craft is recommended for LCA practitioners and current or future LCA experts. Business users and those with plans to scale up LCA are recommended to use SimaPro Synergy.