SUSTAINABILITY STICK TO SUSTAINABLE PRINCIPLES


Mannok’s GB Sales & Marketing Director Lee Gillman tell BMJ what the company is doing to push the sustainability agenda


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annok aspires to be a leader in sustainability. We passionately believe this is the best way to safeguard our current


employment base, create new green skill- based opportunities, deliver low carbon products and services to our customers to meet growing market demand and help the government meet its national sectoral emission targets.


We are currently developing industry- leading projects in the areas of solar PV, green hydrogen and wind energy. We are actively engaged with all the relevant government agencies in Northern Ireland, Ireland and the UK who are key delivery partners, supporting Mannok in unlocking these significant long- term financial investments.


Sustainability sits at the heart of Mannok’s core principles, and upholding those principles throughout every part of its business is fundamental to all Mannok does. Cement production an industry that is hard to abate, but Mannok launched its ambitious sustainability strategy in 2022, the Mannok 2030 Vision – which was updated at the start of 2025 including an increased emissions reduction target of 35% by 2030 (up from 33% in the original version) - that will roadmap the progress the company makes towards a carbon-zero future up to the end of the decade while paving the way for net-zero emissions by no later than 2050. We have looked at sustainability in its widest sense to build its strategy on three foundational pillars of People, Planet and Partners, each of which is key to the long-term success of the organisation and ensuring it continues to contribute to the economic, social and environmental prosperity of the region where it is based.


Its sustainability initiatives are designed to reduce environmental impact, enhance biodiversity, and drive innovation for a greener future. From ambitious carbon reduction targets to harnessing renewable energy and protecting natural habitats, Mannok is committed to creating long-term value for its environment, communities, and industry. The development and enhancement of the natural environment is a priority for us and we have implemented a range of initiatives to nurture and impact nature positively. A significant tree planting programme is


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ongoing with the company aiming to enhance local biodiversity and maximise the carbon sequestration of its land. To date, Mannok has planted 20,400 native trees on its holdings with two large tree planting projects carried out recently. This includes the planting of 9,500 native tree species to create a new woodland at Kinrush and 7,500 native tree species at Crievehill Quarry.


We partnered with the Builders’ Merchants Federation (BMF) to offset the carbon footprint of the BMF All Industry Conference in 2023. We planted a tree for every attendee at the awards ceremony (approximately 750) to help offset the event’s carbon footprint. We’re a proud supporter of the All-Ireland Pollinator Plan and we planted a total of over 500,000 nectar-rich flowers and native trees to benefit Ireland’s pollinators.


Our biodiversity efforts saw us awarded Gold Accreditation in Business in the Community Business & Biodiversity Charter in 2024.


At Mannok we have an active environmental management system (EMS) that provides guidance and oversight that governs the operations within each facility and the potential impact of these operations on the environment. The adoption of sustainability- driven principles throughout the company in relation to lean manufacturing, waste reduction, responsible sourcing, recycling, and energy usage, ensures it continues to improve every stage of production.


Mannok also has published Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) for the majority of its products through an Irish Green Building Council (IGBC) programme. This data-driven analysis of the product lifecycle allows a view


on environmental impact, it’s a continuous journey but it allows a focus on the carbon intensive parts of the process to bring down the overall environmental impact. As well as being fully ISO 14001 accredited our Cement, PIR Insulation and Packaging assets including the cement factory are 50001 accredited with all remaining divisions to follow suit by 2026.


We aim to reduce our carbon emissions by 35% by 2030. One major project, which was the culmination of an innovative collaborative partnership with FLSmidth, saw Mannok officially launch a world’s first new form of combustion technology, Fuel Flex™ Pyrolyser. It’s displaced 40,000 tons of coal with alternative fuel and reduced carbon emissions by 58,000 t/CO2eq annually, effectively removing the majority of fossil fuels from the calcination stage of the process with a cost saving of nearly €12M. This technology is currently being deployed in other cement factories globally.


Mannok has also completed Phase 1/2 of a burner upgrade programme to the Cement Kiln which has seen the introduction of alternative fuel in the kiln outlet for the first time from June 2024. By the end of these project phases in 2025 it will have reduced kiln coal by 55-60% and carbon emissions by an additional 49,000 t/CO2eq. We are also part of a transformative 15- year Energy Valley program that aims to achieve net zero by 2050. This multi-phase deployment of large-scale new renewable energy assets to decarbonise the company’s industrial base and extensive fleet of vehicles, which complements the overall group’s 2030 Vision strategy. BMJ


www.buildersmerchantsjournal.net March 2025


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