ECI/MKI: how Dutch tenders pick lower impact
Selling into the Netherlands often hinges on one number. The Environmental Cost Indicator, or MKI, turns a product’s life‑cycle impacts into euros and uses that as a quality criterion in Best Price quality ratio awards. If your MKI is unclear or based on generic data, you give rivals a head start. Here is how the system works and how manufacturers can land on the right side of the score.
ECI or MKI, in plain English
The Environmental Cost Indicator converts a full LCA into a single euro figure. Buyers compare variants on this number. Lower MKI means less environmental damage and a stronger tender score. Rijkswaterstaat and many public owners use MKI in GWW works as part of their quality evaluation.
The rulebook behind MKI
Dutch contracting and design teams calculate MKI with the national Assessment Method from the Dutch Environmental Database. Version 1.2 took effect on January 1, 2025, aligning with EN 15804 requirements and updated annexes (NMD, 2025) (NMD, 2025). Guidance for public buyers was refreshed in November 2024 to show how to use MKI across the full procurement cycle, not only at award time (PIANOo, 2024) (PIANOo, 2024).
Where MKI shows up in tenders
In civil and infrastructure works, owners often request an MKI for the offered design and materials, then convert it into quality points or a price correction within the Best Price quality ratio method. The practical effect is simple. A clear, low MKI keeps you competitive without racing to the bottom on unit price.
MPG vs MKI, quick cheat sheet
MPG is for buildings and expressed as an annualized score per square meter. MKI is used mainly in GWW and expressed in euros per functional unit of work. The government plans to tighten MPG from July 1, 2025, with new limit values for homes at 1.0 and offices at 1.55, which clarifies the parallel push on materials data quality feeding both MPG and MKI (NEN, 2024). If your portfolio spans B&U and GWW, expect teams to ask for both formats.
Your biggest lever as a manufacturer
Get brand‑specific data into the Nationale Milieudatabase. Category 1 entries are product and brand specific and third‑party verified. Category 3 is generic and includes a 30% uplift factor, which can noticeably worsen the MKI used in evaluation (NMD, 2025) (NMD, 2025). If buyers model your product with Category 3, you are starting from behind.
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What goes into a tender‑ready MKI
- A recent EN 15804 compliant EPD as the data source, aligned with the NMD Assessment Method version in force.
- The correct functional unit buyers will use in DuboCalc or similar validated tools, including declared lifetime and maintenance assumptions.
- Site‑specific energy, transport and packaging that reflect actual operations, not rough averages. Small gaps multiply in a single‑score method, so tight inputs matter.
Policy momentum you should track
The government has announced a bill that would require public owners to set minimum environmental performance for concrete, steel and asphalt, and to use MKI as an award criterion in large GWW projects. The legislative calendar shows internet consultation started on July 10, 2025, with further steps in 2025 (Overheid.nl, 2025). Reliable market‑wide caps or averages per product are not yet published centrally for all materials, so spec teams will continue to lean on the NMD and project‑specific baselines. If a uniform threshold is proposed, expect rapid ripple effects in bid models.
How to prepare without slowing sales
Start from the tender schedule. Work backward from the submission date to freeze your reference year data, verification, and NMD publication ahead of bid modeling. Ask the buyer which MKI scope and unit they will score. Confirm that your product will be modeled with Category 1 data. If not, provide the exact EPD identifiers that should be used in the NMD viewer so tendering teams breath easier.
Common pitfalls that sink a good product
Using an EPD built on inconsistent functional units or outdated background databases. Omitting maintenance, which can inflate MKI once the buyer normalizes lifetimes. Forgetting transport modes and distances that differ from default values. These are small on paper but large inside a euro‑based single score.
If you only do three things this quarter
- Map which SKUs are likely to appear in Dutch GWW bids and check whether each has a published Category 1 entry in the NMD. If any do not, prioritize them.
- Align your EPD functional units and declared lifetimes to the buyer’s modeling approach in DuboCalc, then share a one‑page data guide with sales and bid teams.
- Monitor NMD Assessment Method updates and buyer guidance. PIANOo’s 2024 handreiking remains the most practical playbook for public owners and their suppliers (PIANOo, 2024) (PIANOo, 2024).
The bottom line for commercial teams
MKI is not a side quest in the Netherlands. It is part of how value is scored. A product‑specific EPD that flows into Category 1 data can turn a close competition into a clear award. With one number in euros deciding quality points, accuracy and completeness buy confidence long before price talks begin.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is MKI already mandatory in every Dutch GWW tender
No. Many public owners use MKI as a quality criterion today, and the government is preparing legislation to make MKI mandatory for large GWW projects, with consultation milestones recorded in 2025 (Overheid.nl, 2025).
Do we need new EPDs for the 2025 Dutch method updates
You need EPDs consistent with EN 15804 and the NMD Assessment Method in force. Version 1.2 has been effective since January 1, 2025, with amendments scheduled in 2025 (NMD, 2025) (NMD, 2025).
Will Category 3 data hurt our MKI in bids
Yes. Category 3 generic data carries a 30% uplift factor, which can worsen the modeled MKI versus Category 1 brand‑specific data (NMD, 2025) (NMD, 2025).
About the Author
Eric works at the intersection of sustainability, regulation, and business strategy, helping manufacturers navigate the evolving landscape of EPDs and LCAs. Having spoken with hundreds of teams across North America, brings a deep understanding of what drives ROI, what regulators are asking for, and how companies can stay ahead with smart, scalable approaches to environmental reporting.
