48
EXTERNAL ENVELOPE
greenwashing aren’t the way to go about it. To strive for true sustainability, you need to prove that your material is recycled and provide a form of traceability to show the source of the material.
Attempting to find the source of all materials can be strenuous and so many companies opt to buy carbon credits in an attempt to offset their carbon emissions. However, this is not true sustainability as these credits simply ‘allow’ a company to avoid what they might see as an inconvenience. For true sustainability, either traced recycled materials must be used or other methods of reducing carbon emissions must be considered, such as reducing levels of transport, reducing the amount of material in your product or making sure your waste products are recycled properly.
Thanks to recycled aluminium’s malleability and flexibility, architects and developers can tailor construction elements
The limitations of recycled material Global demand for aluminium profiles and the means to extrude them has remained strong into 2024. Considering the enduring influence of the coronavirus pandemic, the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and the continuing impact of Brexit, increased global demand is still an issue and has forced many countries to increase production, leading to scarcity of supply. Limiting your opportunities by focusing too heavily on achieving a highly recycled material can be a hurdle for many buyers of extruded aluminium. The importance of recycled content should lie in the weight of CO2
per item, not the percentage of
recycled content in the materials themselves. Reducing the total emissions associated with a product is far more sustainable than increasing the percentage of recycled content used, as the less embodied carbon used – by weight – will directly impact how sustainable a product can be. There are no hard and fast rules on what you should or should not do when it comes to the materials you use, but by staying informed on the role of recycled material, we can all make more informed and more viable choices. Adopting a well-thought-through ESG strategy can make a great difference to your approach to sustainability.
Removing aesthetic limitations Most recycled materials can easily be customised to meet specific design requirements. This flexibility enables architects and builders to tailor the appearance of construction elements to
WWW.ARCHITECTSDATAFILE.CO.UK
match the desired aesthetic of a project. Aluminium, for example, is inherently a very malleable construction material, but by using recycled aluminium, custom extrusions can be formed without extra waste from an ore extrusion. In this instance, aesthetics actually come as a benefit when using recycled material.
Is recycled content the future of construction?
Recycled content holds a great deal of potential for the future of the construction industry. Through a massive impact on sustainability, resource conservation and aesthetic possibilities, recycled material can reduce a project’s carbon footprint and alleviate the burden on finite resources. A paradigm shift appears to be incoming – with a laser focus on ESG strategies in the lead-up to 2030 and beyond, companies will likely begin to embrace recycled content not just as a carbon-saving measure, but also as a commitment of responsibility for construction for future generations.
Conclusion No, sustainability does not need to come at the cost of design flexibility. Thanks to recycled content’s malleability and flexibility, architects and developers are provided with the ability to tailor construction elements to meet specific aesthetic preferences. While there are still limitations with recycled content, such as global demand and scarcity of supply, the benefits largely outweigh the detractors. Some manufacturers already use recycled materials to maintain a level of sustainable manufacturing throughout their entire process. There are no hard and fast rules on what you should or should not do when it comes to the materials you use, but by staying informed on the role of recycled material, we can all make more informed and more viable choices. Adopting a well-thought-through ESG strategy can make a great difference to your approach to sustainability. Recycled content is likely to be a pivotal force in shaping tomorrow’s construction landscape, benefitting resource conservation, sustainability and the industry’s commitment to responsible construction practices for now and the future yet to come.
Nick Haughton is head of ESG at Sapphire Balconies
ADF JUNE 2024
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68
