For any industrial manufacturing company, a key challenge in reducing value chain emissions is the emissions from materials used in products and components.
The Low Carbon & Resilient Materials Summit, held in Helsinki on September 2, 2026 as part of Combient Pure’s 2026 Scope 3 Decarbonization Accelerator, explored the multifaceted ways that these emissions can be tackled - and how decarbonization is more and more linked to business resilience.
Along with our Scope 3 Decarbonization Accelerator partner AFRY Management Consulting, the Summit brought together Combient Associated Companies for expert and peer presentations in the morning, and an afternoon dedicated to a knowledge-sharing circuit with companies on the forefront of material decarbonization topics.
The lowest-carbon kilogram is the one designed out
While “greener” materials like low-carbon steel, aluminium, plastics and other alternatives are important, AFRY's introduction to the current market landscape revealed that availability, qualification, cost premiums, and data gaps mean that substitution alone will not deliver the scale of reductions companies need.
AFRY’s central message was that material decarbonization cannot begin only when sourcing decisions are made. Around 80% of a product’s material footprint is locked in at the design phase, making early intervention for sustainability matters critical. One practical way to do this is by implementing a carbon budget in product development: assigning a target carbon intensity per part, running screening LCAs at concept stage, and making carbon part of gate reviews. This helps teams design out unnecessary material, choose lower-carbon grades where feasible, and avoid treating sustainability as a late-stage reporting exercise.
Another practical takeaway was to map materials by mass, not spend, to understand where emissions really sit. This shift from financial visibility to emissions visibility is essential for making material decarbonization operational, helping companies prioritize supplier-specific EPDs, redesign opportunities, and qualification of low-carbon grades where they will have the greatest effect.
The Summit’s case presentations from Konecranes, Stora Enso, and KONE showed how material decarbonization moves from ambition to application: Konecranes presented its approach to reducing Scope 3 emissions through supplier collaboration and ecodesign, Stora Enso brought a broader material transition perspective on renewable materials, and KONE’s session focused on how low carbon and resilient materials choices propagate throughout the product lifecycle.
Collaboration is the decarbonization multiplier
As AFRY put it, no single buyer can move a steel or aluminium supplier alone. Cross-functional collaboration between R&D, sustainability, procurement, finance, and strategy is needed internally, while cross-company collaboration is needed externally to pool demand, share qualification data, and create common requirements for EPD and carbon data.
Taking this a step further, the afternoon’s Material Innovation Circuit was dedicated to three different paths for collaboration and the future of material decarbonization:
An innovation showcase with AMEXCI and Combient Foundry, showcasing how additive manufacturing and other technological innovations can help reduce material emissions
A sneak peak at material innovations and discussing increased uptake of alternative materials through value chain collaboration, hosted by VTT and Combient Pure
An interactive discussion with AFRY on how regulation and technological changes impact the future material landscape
The Low Carbon & Resilient Materials Summit showed that material decarbonization is not just a materials question. It is a design, data, and collaboration challenge. The path forward is to put carbon into early design decisions, identify emissions hotspots, and work across company and value chain boundaries to qualify, ideate, and scale lower-carbon solutions. By doing so, companies can move from ambition to real products with lower embodied emissions and stronger resilience in business models and supply chains.
Thanks to all our speakers and attendees for the great discussions from the day!
The 2026 Scope 3 Decarbonization Accelerator concludes in November with a workshop on Decarbonizing Logistics & Transportation. Prior to the workshop, AFRY will host a Breakfast on Water & Nature Resilience - we hope to see you there! (Registration is open only to Combient Associated Companies, via Combient Twin).
For more information on the Scope 3 Decarbonization Accelerator, please don't hesitate to reach out to anna.pakkala@combient.com.
