The construction of buildings and other infrastructure contributes to climate change. Over time, reducing the embodied carbon in structural materials, such as steel, has become a primary target for meeting climate change goals within this sector. Steel column base plate assemblies, which include steel plates, anchor systems, and concrete pedestals, are critical components of load transfer mechanisms; however, they remain quasi-ignored in environmental impact assessments. This study assessed the impact of concrete pedestal compression on the design efficiency and embodied carbon of steel base plate assemblies. Concrete with a compression range of 21–35 MPa was used in the parametric analysis of three typical column sizes: H300, H250, and H200. The AISC Design Guide was used to determine the base plate sizes, whereas the cradle-to-gate approach in BS EN 15978 was used to calculate the embodied carbon. The study results indicated that when the concrete strength was increased from 21 MPa to 28–32 MPa, there was a notable reduction in the base plate areas, ranging from 30-40%, and the associated embodied carbon decreased principally owing to the reduction in carbon-intensive steel. However, beyond 32 MPa concrete, further reductions in plate size are insignificant, whereas the concrete embodies more carbon. Sensitivity analysis confirmed that these trends remained steady despite changes in the carbon factor. Steel continues to be the main contributor to the total embodied carbon. This study provides practical advice for structural engineers. Selecting a concrete strength between 28 and 32 MPa and properly sizing the base plates can significantly improve the design of low-carbon-steel-framed buildings.
Suwondo et al. (2026) studied this question.