Supplier Codes That Secretly Govern Your EPD Roadmap
Land a cloud contract and you also inherit a sustainability homework list any building-product maker should know by heart. Ignore it and you risk getting ghosted at the sourcing stage, long before cost or lead time even surface.
Why Big Tech’s Rules Matter in Construction Procurement
Microsoft, Google, and Amazon Web Services each spend billions on data centers filled with steel, concrete, switchgear, and busbars. Their supplier codes now read like mini climate treaties. If your product meets ANSI, UL, and fire code yet misses their carbon clauses, the quote dies unseen. Those same clauses are leaking into hospital, retail, and public-sector bids because procurement teams copy what the cloud leaders do.
Microsoft: Data Disclosure or No Deal
Microsoft requires every supplier to hand over cradle-to-gate Scope 1, 2, and 3 numbers, third-party assured, plus a plan to cut absolute emissions 55 % by 2030 and run on 100 % carbon-free electricity for Microsoft-bound production (Microsoft Procurement, 2025). Miss a disclosure cycle and invoices can be held back. For manufacturers, an EPD audited under EN 15804 gives Microsoft the verified intensity data it needs, buying you breathing room while you tackle reductions.
Google: Annual Carbon Attestation
Google’s code demands that suppliers “track, document, and publicly report” Scope 1 and 2, plus material Scope 3 categories, and show a year-on-year clean-energy ramp toward 100 % by 2030 (Google Supplier Code of Conduct, 2024). The company explicitly calls for credible third-party certifications. An EPD aligns neatly with that ask because it packages your process energy and material impacts in a format Google’s auditors already parse.
AWS: Emissions on Speed Dial
Amazon’s Supply Chain Standards push suppliers to improve energy efficiency, track emissions, and report the figures on request (Amazon Supply Chain Standards, 2023). AWS went further by launching a built-in Sustainability module to collect LCAs and carbon forms directly inside its procurement portal (AWS, 2024). Translation: if your numbers are not export-ready, your competitors’ are.
EPDs: The Currency These Giants Trust
All three codes mention verifiable data or “credible third-party certifications.” An EPD checks both boxes, wraps your carbon story in ISO 14025 rigor, and protects proprietary process details behind the scenes. One published EPD often satisfies multiple line items at once—total energy, GHG, water, and waste—so you stop chasing ad-hoc spreadsheets every quarter.
Four Moves to Keep the PO Flowing
- Map which of your plants feed Microsoft, Google, or AWS jobs, then baseline each one’s utility bills and scrap rates.
- Pick the Product Category Rule your top competitor used. Auditors benchmark first, negotiate later.
- Build a single “evidence locker” where utility invoices, production volumes, and transport legs live in the same folder. Future audits become a 30-minute upload, not a Q4 fire drill.
- Give sales a one-page FAQ so they know how to answer “Do you have third-party carbon data?” without pinging engineering at 10 p.m.
Commercial Upside That Outlasts a Contract
Cloud projects run for a decade. Lock in as an approved supplier today and you bake in recurring revenue for refresh cycles and expansion phases. The cost of one enviromental declaration pales next to ten years of spec-in insulation, cable tray, or rack hardware.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need separate EPDs for each plant if I supply Microsoft from multiple locations?
Not always. If the process and bill of materials are identical and the PCR allows averaged datasets, one EPD can cover several plants. But Microsoft may still ask for plant-specific Scope 1 and 2 data. Clarify this during contract negotiations.
Google wants progress toward 100 % clean energy. Does an EPD prove that?
An EPD shows your current energy mix, not future procurement. Pair the EPD with a renewable-electricity purchase agreement or RECs documentation to satisfy Google’s annual attestation requirement.
AWS asked for our Scope 3 data in their Sustainability portal. Can we upload the EPD pdf?
Yes, the portal accepts life-cycle assessment files. Also prepare the underlying Excel inventory so AWS can ingest the numbers into its dashboard.
What assurance level do these clients expect on our carbon numbers?
Microsoft explicitly calls for third-party assurance; Google and AWS imply it by referencing credible certifications. An EPD verified by an accredited program operator meets this bar.
About the Author
Walker Ryan is a climate-tech entrepreneur focused on driving industrial decarbonization through better data. As the founder and CEO of Parq, he helps manufacturers generate high-quality, third-party–verified carbon disclosures at scale—accelerating a traditionally slow and expensive process. Before starting Parq, Walker led over $200 million in sustainability-focused investments as VP of Strategy & Growth at ReStream Solutions, following earlier experience in investment banking at Deutsche Bank. He brings a rare mix of capital markets expertise and hands-on sustainability knowledge to tackling the infrastructure of industrial emissions.
