Our Story
From the beginning, PRé founder Mark Goedkoop understood that to make sustainability work, it needs to be based on facts and collaboration. Since 1990, this has been the driving force behind everything we do at PRé.

Fact-based sustainability since 1990

Today, PRé is at the forefront of the life cycle assessment field. We consult companies in many different sectors and are known as the developer of life cycle assessment (LCA) software trusted by experts around the world. We developed widely applied environmental impact assessment methods and are continuously working on new ones. We actively participate in global sustainability initiatives, specialist projects and our own global partner network.

But how did this all start?

PRé was founded in 1990 with the clear ambition to contribute to a positive change in the world. The driving idea was – and still is – that companies need reliable metrics that allow them to focus on the most effective improvement opportunities. And it worked! Many leading companies, researchers and consultants now use our methods and tools to make better decisions.

From the very beginning, we believed in innovation, transparency and collaboration. Driven by these values, we have built a reputation as a leader in environmental and social sustainability. We like to look back on our journey because it shows the development and insights that came from the simple question: “How can we measure eco?”

1990

Paving new territory from the very first
In 1990, the challenge for eco-designer Mark Goedkoop was how to measure "eco". At that time, although publications stressed the importance of covering the entire life cycle, the concept of life cycle assessment barely existed. Mark turned his focus on making life cycle assessment easier to apply and understand, and this led to him developing SimaPro Craft (previously SimaPro desktop), software for the assessment of the environmental impacts of products. In 1990, PRé was established in Amersfoort, kicking off a time of pioneering and exploring new ground.

1993
Building a global community of experts
You can’t change the world on your own. From the first beginnings as a small company in a tiny country, PRé has always kept an eye out for connection. Even then, we supported the community of experts in the field and joined hands with other pioneers and thought leaders in LCA. That collaboration was – and still is – based on synergy, and we are committed to transparency, quality and accuracy. Over the years, that has led to a network of global partners in over 25 countries. A truly global family.

1995
Developing and spreading the first important methods
Development of the first important methods is what really established PRé as experts. Eco-indicator 95, developed in 1995, was one of the first endpoint impact assessment methods in the world, allowing the environmental load of a product to be expressed in a single score. From Eco-indicator 99 and the CML 2000 method came ReCiPe 2008 and later ReCiPe 2016. These methods transformed the long list of life cycle inventory results into a limited number of indicator scores. That accelerated the use of life cycle assessment as the most robust and trustworthy methodology for impact measurement.

2010
Broadening the scope with new methodologies and applications
With sustainability higher on the agenda, sustainability metrics and methodology advanced significantly. This also brought up new impacts to be assessed. PRé played a leading role in this and initiated, for instance, the Social Value Initiative (previously called the Roundtable for Product Social Metrics) with the aim to develop and implement a methodology for product social impact assessment. We also developed a methodology for biodiversity, the next big global challenge. At the same time, new applications for LCA came to the fore. The diversification in applications made the company grow in our scope and team size.

2015
Bridging the gap between LCA and decision making
Based on intensive interactions with our partners and customers, we identified a gap between the technical, science-based LCA reports delivered by LCA experts and the kind of day-to-day information needed to make better business decisions. To solve this and make sustainability collaboration easier and more effective, we designed the online solutions SimaPro Collect and SimaPro Share. These tools are built on an interactive, intuitive and web-based platform. They improve collaboration by making life cycle assessment results accessible, tangible and understandable. This interaction brings interesting new possibilities that we are now exploring, not only for ourselves but for the entire community.

2024
Scaling up life cycle information for all
Now we’re at the start of a new, exciting era. An online platform is in place that enables us to connect systems, people and organizations. To share the collective knowledge of the LCA community about the impact of entire value chains. New, API-based solutions make footprinting information available to all, which drives sustainable action. This leverages our shared wisdom at a much larger scale than ever before. And we feel we’re only at the start of scaling up our efforts. Still driven to make a positive change by making sustainability more fact-based. Will you join us?

PRe Consultants bv Downloads

Eco-indicator 95 reports

Quantifying Dematerialization

Eco-indicator 99 reports