What is the life cycle cost?
Life cycle cost or price takes into account the entire cost of employing the product. There are two levels of life cycle analysis (LCA): life cycle cost to the purchaser of the product, and entire life cycle cost to the global environment. The first approach is largely just an economic analysis. For example, when selecting exterior siding for a building, the builder would consider not only the unit and total cost of the product, but the added costs of transporting the product to the site (local market or across the continent), labour costs to install, additional costs (electricity, water consumption), maintenance costs (annual paint and repair), and disposal costs (some building products contain toxic chemicals which may introduce disposal fees). This approach clearly identifies the broader costs of employing a product and the economic costs directly to the user. However, a more thorough approach can be taken to life cycle costing and include the costs that are not included in the purc
