Carbon footprint and life cycle assessment of fitness equipment

Fitness equipment does weigh on the environmental footprint of a sports facility, but rarely where buyers expect and rarely in the proportions that are claimed. Between manufacture, electricity consumption in service and end of life, a 300 square metre floor represents in the order of 27 to 44 tonnes of CO2 equivalent over twelve years. This article publishes the calculation model and its assumptions, sets out what regulation actually requires of an equipment buyer today, and identifies the reduction levers that matter.

Short answer. The most immediate obligation for an equipment buyer is public procurement: European and national procurement rules increasingly require environmental considerations in the definition of need, in the performance conditions and in at least one award criterion, so price alone no longer separates bids. Corporate sustainability reporting under the EU CSRD has been deferred and narrowed since 2025, and now applies to a minority of operators. On the substance, in a low carbon electricity market, equipment durability weighs as much as consumption: a machine that lasts fifteen years has roughly half the annualised footprint of the same machine replaced after seven.

What actually applies to an equipment buyer

Three regimes are relevant, and they are frequently confused with one another.

Public procurement is the binding one. Contracting authorities across the European Union are required to build environmental considerations into their contracts, and in several member states, France included, that now extends to a mandatory environmental award criterion. For a supplier, the operational translation is simple: an offer documented on material, durability and end of life becomes a measurable advantage in bid analysis rather than a marketing claim.

Extended producer responsibility applies to whoever places goods on the market. Several member states operate an extended producer responsibility scheme covering sports and leisure articles, funded by an eco contribution that pays for collection, repair and end of life treatment. In France, that scheme has been in force since 2022. Alongside it, the WEEE Directive imposes take back obligations on electrical and electronic equipment, which covers motorised cardio machines.

Building energy obligations apply to the site, not to the machine. Several national schemes, and the recast Energy Performance of Buildings Directive, impose consumption reduction trajectories on large tertiary buildings. For a large club this makes equipment selection a direct lever: motor type, passive magnetic resistance, standby management and automatic screen shutdown.

One correction worth making, because it is frequently repeated. Repairability and durability indices, where they exist, apply to a limited list of consumer products. They do not apply to treadmills or to professional fitness equipment, and claiming an index on a product sheet would be an inaccurate statement.

The model and its assumptions

Life cycle assessment is structured by ISO 14040 and ISO 14044. The distribution below is what we observe on fitness equipment operated on a low carbon grid.

Assumptions, which should be read before the figures. Grid carbon intensity of around 60 g CO2e per kWh, which is the single most decisive parameter in the whole calculation. Use of 1,500 hours per machine per year, that is 4 to 6 hours a day over 300 days, a commercial club profile. Treadmill consumption under load of 0.8 to 1.2 kWh per hour of use. Manufacturing footprints consolidated from European manufacturer environmental declarations and material emission factors, which are orders of magnitude rather than certified product by product assessments.

Change the grid and the conclusions change. At 350 g CO2e per kWh, the use phase of a treadmill represents five to six times more than it does on a low carbon grid. Any international comparison that does not correct for the emission factor is worthless.

Two conclusions follow, and the first runs against the usual claim. On a low carbon grid, the use phase does not dominate a treadmill footprint: it accounts for roughly 45 to 60 per cent, against 80 per cent and more on a carbon intensive grid. Motor choice matters, but machine lifetime matters at least as much. And mechanical equipment is entirely material driven: a rack, a selectorised machine or a plate has no use phase footprint at all, so only steel or rubber quantity and longevity count.

The five levers that actually reduce the footprint

Buy in the right use class. ISO 20957-1:2024 defines class H for home use, class S for professional and commercial use and class I for professional inclusive use, alongside accuracy classes A, B and C. There is no semi professional class, and any source that uses the term is wrong. Installing home class equipment in a busy club guarantees premature replacement, and the manufacturing footprint is then amortised over three to five years instead of ten to fifteen. Durability is a carbon figure before it is a sales argument.

Prefer technologies that are frugal in use. An AC motor consumes less than a DC motor at equivalent service and lasts longer, so the two effects compound. Bikes and rowers with passive magnetic resistance have almost no use phase footprint. On a floor of thirty connected machines, screen standby consumption is a real line item that scheduled shutdown removes at zero cost.

Maintain rather than replace. Replacing a running belt costs a few tens of kilograms of CO2e; replacing the whole treadmill costs several hundred. Preventive maintenance is the cheapest carbon lever on a cardio floor.

Use refurbished equipment where it is appropriate. A refurbished machine avoids most of the manufacturing footprint of a new one, at the cost of replacing wear parts. It suits secondary zones, workplace gyms and hotel rooms better than a high traffic commercial floor.

Specify end of life at purchase, not at disposal. Ask for the material breakdown, the dismantling method and the take back route in the tender documents. Steel structures are almost entirely recyclable, bonded rubber flooring less so, and electronics require a dedicated route.

Frequently asked questions

Does buying local reduce the footprint significantly?

Less than most buyers assume. Transport represents 3 to 8 per cent of the total, so halving the distance moves the total by a few per cent. Manufacturing and lifetime dominate. Local supply has real advantages for lead times, spare parts and after sales response, which in turn extend machine life, and that is where the indirect carbon benefit sits.

Is a self powered machine carbon free?

Its use phase is close to zero, which is a genuine advantage, but its manufacturing footprint is comparable to that of an equivalent powered machine. Treat the claim as a reduction of one stage, not of the whole life cycle.

What should we ask a supplier for in a tender?

Material composition by mass, steel grade and surface treatment, warranty duration, a written commitment on spare parts availability, the use class under ISO 20957-1:2024, and the end of life route. These are all verifiable on documents, which is what an award criterion needs.

How long should we plan to keep equipment?

Plan on ten to fifteen years for correctly specified strength equipment and steel structures, and seven to twelve years for motorised cardio in commercial service. Anything shorter usually indicates that the use class was under specified at purchase.

Building an environmental case into your specification

Light In Fitness has manufactured and distributed professional sports equipment from Tours, France, since 2013, and has equipped more than 500 sites. We supply the documentation a contracting authority needs to score an environmental criterion: material data, steel grades and surface treatments, warranty terms of 2 to 5 years by range, 20 years on steel structures, and spare parts commitments. Quotations are issued within 24 working hours.