BLCC was developed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and contains the following modules:
- FEMP Analysis, Energy Project
- Federal Analysis, Financed Project Office of Management and Budget Analysis
- MILCON Analysis, Energy Project
- MILCON Analysis, Energy Conservation Resilience Investment Program
- MILCON Analysis, Non-Energy Project
BLCC conducts economic analyses by evaluating the relative cost effectiveness of alternative buildings and building-related systems or components. Typically, BLCC is used to evaluate alternative designs that have higher initial costs but lower operating costs over the project life than the lowest-initial-cost design. It is especially useful for evaluating the costs and benefits of energy and water conservation and renewable energy projects.
The life cycle cost (LCC) of two or more alternative designs are computed and compared to determine which has the lowest LCC and is therefore more economical in the long run. BLCC also calculates comparative economic measures for alternative designs, including net savings, savings-to-investment ratio, adjusted internal rate of return, and years to payback.