ISO 22095 Mass Balance Chain of Custody Audit Requirements
ISO 22095 mass balance audits demand strict site boundaries, verified baseline yield conversions, and zero negative credit balances across accounting periods.
Site-Level Inventory Balance
Meaning
The physical reconciliation of certified resin stocks is conducted within the physical boundaries of a single manufacturing facility. A site-level inventory balance ensures that mass balance credits are not transferred between different factories or regions to offset shortages. Moulders must calculate this balance to prove that the certified polymers sold from a specific plant were actually produced or handled at that same location.
This site-specific requirement prevents the virtual movement of sustainability attributes across unconnected global operations.
Material Efficiency
Local sourcing of polymers reduces the carbon footprint and ensures that the physical resin used in molding is tracked accurately. The site-level inventory balance forces plant managers to maintain their own stocks of certified virgin and recycled resins. If a facility experiences a shortage of certified material, it cannot borrow credits from a sister plant to fulfill its orders.
This restriction preserves the link between the physical polymer processed on-site and the digital credits declared on the final product. It also prevents the masking of localized process inefficiencies through the consolidation of multi-site inventories.
Production Limit
Operational limits are imposed on the compounding line because each facility must manage its own material constraints. Achieving a site-level inventory balance means that the local plant’s recycling and compounding efficiency directly dictates the volume of certified parts it can produce. If a plant has high scrap rates, it cannot import external credits to cover the loss.
This constraint drives local process improvements and encourages the minimization of on-site scrap.
Financial Consequence
This site-specific accounting influences the logistics cost of sustainable production. Because the site-level inventory balance prevents the transfer of credits between sites, companies cannot concentrate all certified production at a single low-cost location. Each site must bear the costs of local certification and tracking.