The Global Electronics Association has released IPC-1783-CO2E, International Standard for Data Collection and Reporting of CO2 Equivalent (CO2e) Emissions for the Electronics Manufacturing Supply Chain. The new global standard aims to improve the consistency, credibility and comparability of product carbon footprint data across the electronics industry.

As customers, regulators and supply-chain partners increasingly request product-level emissions information, electronics manufacturers face differences in how organisations measure, estimate, collect and report carbon data. These differences can make product carbon footprint calculations difficult to compare, validate and use for decision-making.

IPC-1783-CO2E provides electronics-industry-specific guidance for collecting and reporting CO2e emissions data used in product carbon footprint calculations. It supports a consistent approach across complex, multi-tier electronics supply chains, helping companies improve data quality and respond to evolving customer and regulatory expectations.

“Product carbon footprint data is becoming an essential part of how electronics companies communicate with customers, manage their supply chains and prepare for changing market and regulatory requirements,” said Francis D’Souza, task group chair for IPC-1783-CO2E and CEO at banyan.eco. “Without a common industry approach, companies can spend considerable time reconciling data that was developed using different assumptions and methodologies. IPC-1783-CO2E gives the electronics supply a pragmatic and standardized approach to measuring and reporting data, with data quality indicators, thus improving consistency, strengthening confidence in reported data and enabling more meaningful action.”

The standard helps organisations to improve data consistency through a more standardised approach to measuring, estimating, collecting and reporting CO2e emissions data, support product carbon footprint calculations through activity and process models for building product-level CO2e calculations, strengthen data quality through methodology choices and associated data-quality indicators that support consistent reporting, and address evolving requirements through guidance aligned with recognised Greenhouse Gas Protocol and International Organization for Standardization principles.

“Electronics manufacturing depends on globally connected supply chains, often involving many suppliers, processes and materials,” said Chris Jorgensen, Senior Director, Standards, Global Electronics Association. “This standard gives the industry a common foundation for developing more reliable product carbon footprint data, supporting sustainability goals while reducing unnecessary complexity for manufacturers and their suppliers.”

IPC-1783-CO2E is relevant to sustainability, environmental compliance, supply-chain, procurement, manufacturing and product-management professionals seeking practical guidance on product-level emissions data.

The release forms part of the association’s ongoing work to develop standards and resources that help the electronics industry address sustainability challenges through technical rigour, shared language and actionable tools.