STONE & CERAMIC THE REAL DEAL
Natural stone is the original sustainable material, delivering sustainability in both its extraction and whole-life value, says the Stone Federation.
The tiling sector is almost full to bursting with new products, all claiming to be the next big thing. However, there is one material that has stood the test of time and been a consistently popular choice with clients and specifiers alike throughout the different interior design trends, and that is natural stone.
Natural stone not only delivers attractive, durable projects, but it is also the original sustainable material choice for tiling projects.
As the industry has become increasingly aware that a ‘business as usual’ approach to the carbon impacts of design and construction is no longer an option, there is a fresh drive to consider and reduce the ‘whole-life carbon’ impacts of projects. To specify materials that can deliver both attractive and long- lasting projects.
In short, whole-life carbon includes both embodied carbon and operational (in-use) carbon. It includes material extraction or creation and transport as well as lifetime emissions from maintenance, repair, replacement, and disposal of the materials.
For clients looking to select materials that minimise carbon impact, natural stone is a fantastic choice delivering sustainability in both its extraction and whole-life value and ultimately, a more cost-effective solution.
There have been a number of studies comparing the whole- life carbon impact of different construction materials including natural stone. One of these research projects compared the lifecycle assessments of a range of different materials used for flooring.
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STONE OUTPERFORMS CERAMIC
AND TERRAZZO When comparing the Global Warming Potential (GWP) of natural stone tiles with ceramic, parquet, large-format ceramics, PVC, laminate, and carpet alternatives, natural stone was the best performer by a clear margin.
The study carried out by the German Natural Stone Association found that, when comparing the Global Warming Potential of coverings used for the highest performance floors, large-format ceramic tiles have a 74% higher Global Warming Potential than natural stone tiles, and terrazzo a 24% higher result than its natural stone counterpart.
A+ GREEN GUIDE RATING The Green Guide to Specification, which is part of BREEAM, sets out an A+ to E ranking system for the environmental performance of a material. The factors evaluated include climate change, mineral resource extraction, waste disposal, and fossil fuel depletion. In a case study project carried out by the Building Research Establishment (BRE), almost half of all natural stone related components achieve either A+ or A and the majority of the remainder score a C or above.
There is an increasing awareness among specifiers that materials must earn their place on a specification, and in light of the results shown, natural stone is most definitely justifying its inclusion.
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