Chris Bradshaw, Chief Sustainability Officer at Bentley Systems

Background

Chris Bradshaw is chief sustainability officer at Bentley, bringing together Bentley’s sustainability and education initiatives with the objective of empowering Bentley’s users to achieve sustainable development goals, while ensuring the next generation of engineers has the tools and knowledge to succeed. He joined Bentley as chief marketing officer and was previously chief marketing and product officer of Blue Prism Group, a London-based software company that specializes in robotic process automation. Chris also worked at Autodesk in a variety of leadership roles, including chief marketing officer. Additionally, he managed flight software development for the United States Air Force, where he guided the development, testing, and integration of on-board computer systems for two national space programs. Chris earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Cornell University, and an M.B.A. from Duke University. He serves as a member of the Board of Project Lead the Way, a K-12 STEM education non-profit organization.

Bentley Carbon Analysis

To provide insights into Bentley’s new carbon analysis capabilities, Tim Langdon, publisher of Eco Voice, had the pleasure of facilitating a Q&A with Chris Bradshaw, Chief Sustainability Officer at Bentley Systems.

Q1. What are Bentley’s new carbon analysis capabilities?

Bentley’s new carbon analysis capabilities allow users to conduct embodied carbon analysis across the entire lifecycle of infrastructure projects—from design to construction, and even during the operational phase. This advancement is crucial in helping engineers and designers assess the carbon impact of the materials and infrastructure they’re using.

In our iTwin platform, this capability extends beyond just benefiting designers, it also provides value to other stakeholders. For example, if the project owner is committed to minimising carbon impact, this tool helps demonstrate that the project is meeting its carbon reduction goals. Given that many infrastructure projects are subject to public scrutiny, especially in regions like Australia where sustainability is a top priority, this tool allows project teams to track and prove that they are meeting sustainability goals, while also ensuring transparency to the public and other stakeholders.

Ultimately, Bentley’s platform enables more informed and transparent decision-making. Engineers can weigh trade-offs between cost, schedule, quality, and carbon footprint. The goal is to drive decisions that save time, money, and carbon, contributing to more sustainable infrastructure outcomes for everyone involved.

Q2. How do they measure and reduce embodied carbon?

Bentley’s embodied carbon analysis starts by aggregating all project and asset data in an iTwin digital twin, which acts as a virtual representation of the project. This digital twin automatically quantifies the materials specified in the design and prepares the necessary data for carbon reporting. It ensures that every aspect of the project’s embodied carbon, from the design phase through construction, is accurately captured and analysed.

Once the material quantities are computed, Bentley’s iTwin Experience product then connects to a third-party service such as EC3 or One Click LCA to associate embodied carbon values with those materials. These services provide extensive libraries of life cycle assessments (LCAs), which include validated embodied carbon figures for materials commonly used in construction, such as concrete, steel, and plastics. By referencing these databases, Bentley’s solution can automatically calculate the embodied carbon for each material, based on the specified quantities in the design, making the process faster and more accurate.

Q3. How do these capabilities contribute to improving sustainability in infrastructure design?

The Bentley Carbon Analysis capabilities address embodied carbon, which represents the total greenhouse gas emissions associated with materials throughout their life cycle—production, transportation, installation, maintenance, and disposal. By providing engineers and designers with real-time embodied carbon values for each material and design iteration, the solution empowers teams to create designs that minimise carbon emissions, aligning with sustainability goals.

What sets this solution apart is its ability to integrate carbon data directly into the 3D model of the project. This real-time tracking and visualisation of the carbon footprint enable project teams to identify which areas of the design are most carbon-intensive. For instance, in a railway project, overpasses requiring large amounts of concrete and steel can be highlighted, allowing teams to explore alternatives such as material substitutions or modifications to reduce their carbon impact.

By making the carbon footprint visible and actionable within the design process, this capability fosters informed decision-making that balances structural integrity, safety, and sustainability. It transforms the approach to infrastructure design, encouraging not only more sustainable outcomes but also greater awareness and accountability in reducing greenhouse gas emissions across the project lifecycle.

Bentley Carbon Analysis Visualization Airport

Q4. Why is carbon analysis important in the current landscape?

Carbon analysis and reporting is key to meeting environmental, social, and regulatory requirements. With governments worldwide introducing regulations that mandate carbon reporting and reduction in infrastructure projects, compliance has shifted from being a voluntary commitment to an essential requirement. These mandates not only require reporting but often dictate specific formats and standards.

This shift has significant implications for engineers and designers. Many already prioritise sustainable outcomes and are personally committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. However, regulatory requirements provide the framework and accountability that empower them to prioritise these goals within projects. When governments and project owners enforce carbon-related standards, it ensures that sustainability moves from being an aspirational goal to a tangible deliverable.

Beyond compliance, carbon analysis benefits the environment and society by driving the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, which is vital for mitigating climate change. It also ensures infrastructure projects align with global sustainability objectives, benefiting communities by fostering greener, more resilient infrastructure. As such, carbon analysis is not just about meeting mandates but about creating infrastructure that supports long-term environmental and societal well-being.

Q5. What is the current uptake of carbon reporting in Australia?

Australia is at the forefront of carbon reporting and regulation, largely driven by the initiatives of the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water. Through frameworks like the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting (NGER) scheme, the Australian government has established a strong foundation for tracking and reducing emissions. This commitment places Australia ahead of many other nations in terms of structured and actionable climate policy, setting an example for how governments can lead in sustainability.

What’s also particularly notable about Australia’s efforts is their scope. The regulations address not just embodied carbon—the emissions tied to the creation and construction of materials—but also operational carbon, which encompasses emissions from a project’s usage over time, such as powering a train after it’s built. This comprehensive view of carbon emissions positions Australia as a leader in integrating sustainability into infrastructure design, construction, and operation, giving hope for a more sustainable future.

Q6. What role can governments play in helping businesses adopt carbon analysis?

Governments play a crucial role in helping businesses adopt carbon analysis by making it a legal requirement through mandatory reporting of embodied carbon and adherence to emissions standards. This approach, as seen in Australia, ensures carbon reporting becomes a standard practice, driving widespread adoption and meaningful sustainability improvements.

Additionally, financial incentives like tax breaks can lower the cost of implementing carbon analysis tools, making them more accessible. Governments can also influence insurers and financiers to offer better rates for projects that demonstrate reduced carbon emissions, creating a strong economic case for adoption.

By promoting transparency in project outcomes and balancing sustainability with safety, cost, and timelines, governments can foster collaboration among stakeholders. This holistic approach accelerates sustainable practices across industries while building trust and driving innovation.

Q7. How can publications like Eco Voice contribute to promoting sustainability in your sector?

The media have an important role in driving education and awareness for sustainable practices and solutions in the market. By not only speaking to experts in the industry, but also showcasing transformative projects like Brisbane’s Cross River Rail—where digital twins and immersive design technologies are used to create more inclusive and sustainable infrastructure—publications can highlight the tangible benefits of innovation. These examples demonstrate how technology improves project outcomes, such as enabling disabled individuals to provide input during the design phase or training operators in realistic virtual environments before construction is completed.

Overall, media titles like Eco Voice can provide significant value to the industry, by acting as a platform to share knowledge and motivate industries to embrace innovative solutions for a more sustainable future.

ABOUT ECO VOICE

First published in 2003, Eco Voice is your go-to publication for sustainability news in Australia. Eco Voice prides itself as an independent news platform with a clear focus on sustainability, with articles coming from a diverse range of contributors – all levels of government, corporations, not-for-profits, community groups, small to medium sized businesses, universities, research organisations, together with input from international sources. Eco Voice values community, conservation and commerce. Eco Voice is a media partner of the prestigious Australian Banksia Sustainability Awards – The Peak Sustainability Awards.

ABOUT Bentley Systems

Bentley Systems is the infrastructure engineering software company. We provide innovative software to advance the world’s infrastructure – sustaining both the global economy and environment. Our industry-leading software solutions are used by professionals, and organizations of every size, for the design, construction, and operations of roads and bridges, rail and transit, water and wastewater, public works and utilities, buildings and campuses, mining, and industrial facilities. Our offerings, powered by the iTwin Platform for infrastructure digital twins, include MicroStation and Bentley Open applications for modeling and simulation, Seequent’s software for geoprofessionals, and Bentley Infrastructure Cloud encompassing ProjectWise for project delivery, SYNCHRO for construction management, and AssetWise for asset operations. Bentley Systems’ 5,200 colleagues generate annual revenues of more than $1 billion in 194 countries.

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