Draft Strategy for Sustainable Construction Part 23

August 13, 2009 By Leave a Comment

The final of this weeks recipro post on the Sustainable Construction Draft.

Q: Do you agree that the targets and milestones proposed for Materials will deliver improved resource efficiency with reduced environmental and societal impacts, and are sufficiently ambitious? If not, then please propose alternative targets.

1. Most of the respondents who answered the question thought the targets were reasonable, though some thought they might be very difficult to achieve by 2010. Some questioned whether the targets would drive improvement in performance.

2. Some respondents said that if the targets were adopted, a mechanism should be introduced to monitor performance, taking account of ongoing research on sustainability of materials. Phased implementation and shorter-term milestones were also suggested as a way of making the targets more achievable and effective.

3. A number of respondents suggested that the targets should be consistent with a forthcoming European standard on Environmental Product Declarations developed within CEN/TC 350.

4. Some advocated incentives for manufacturers and developers to create a stronger market demand for more sustainable products.

5. Some respondents expressed the need for an independent tool or certification scheme to rate the sustainability of all products and enable direct comparisons across the sector. Some suggested there was a need for specification guides and sustainable toolkit templates.

6. Other suggestions included: a target for recycled content; more widespread use of Life Cycle Assessments; and the need to support SMEs.

Filed Under: general, industry, legislation Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Sustainability Versus the Credit Crunch Part 4

June 22, 2009 By Leave a Comment

The final installment of the excellent Sustainability versus the Credit Crunch artcile written by the National Federation of Builders, follows here.  We at recipro found this article to be extremely interesting and hope that you have too.  Why not let us know what you think?

The three pillars of sustainability are environmental, social and economic.  The only pillar not yet dealt with is economic – how can you position your business to whether the down turn and be competitive once the storm has past?  Membership of a Trade Federation makes even more sense during hard times than it does in good.  It is never more important to use the opportunities that membership presents to you to share and benefit from the collective experience, whether it is taking advantage of the advice available at no additional cost; training services for management and personal development training, or the ability to procure sensibly at discounted rates leveraging the buying power of a large group.  Membership also allows you to influence the direction of lobbying work, ensuring your voice is heard on key issues such as fair payments, public sector procurement and VAT.   Complimentary services that will help you keep your business running, such as access to additional finance, are also available through Business Link.
Competition for work is fierce and the economic outlook is uncertain.  However, there are ways of steering a sustainable path through the uncertainty.

Filed Under: Business Help, environment, industry Tagged With: ,

Sustainability versus Credit Crunch Part 2

June 8, 2009 By Leave a Comment

The second part of the In Site article we have been reading at recipro, is all about the waste generated by the construction industry.  Have a read and let us know what you think.

Waste

The construction industry generates 120m tonnes of waste each year.  That is three times as much as all households in the UK.   Of this 120m tonnes, 20m tonnes goes straight to landfill without any reuse or salvage.  In April 2008, the standard rate of landfill tax was £32 per tonne.  The rate will rise by £8 every April until at least 2010-2011.  As this tax rises year on year, wasting less and reusing or recycling more will become more attractive financially.
The NFB has worked with WRAP (Waste & Resources Action Programme) to produce guidance for small and medium sized contractors called “reducing your construction waste” .  This is one of the deliverables from the government’s strategy for sustainable construction”.  The guidance leaflet and complementary poster both simply and clearly lay out the benefits of the waste hierarchy of reduce, reuse, recycle and dispose.  The leaflet has three case studies one of which belongs to NFB member Cawrey Ltd from Leicester.  The case studies illustrate how those companies have made significant cost savings through small changes.

Filed Under: environment, industry Tagged With: ,

Sustainability versus the Credit Crunch

June 5, 2009 By Leave a Comment

This week in the recipro office, we have been reading an interesting article in the National Federation of Builders excellent magazine, InSite.  The article discusses the issue of sustainability in these troubled economic times.  The first part follows here:

At this years Ecobuild conference and exhibition, the housing minister Margaret Beckett laid out some of the challenges facing her department and the industry in relation to climate change, zero carbon and planning communities.
The minister recognised the importance of balancing aspiration and ambitious target setting while not making unreasonable or unrealistic demands of the house building or construction industries.  New build and existing stock each present a different set of challenges.  Outside the decisions taken on a unit level, judgement has to be used on whether the technologies and techniques being used are appropriate for the location – how do homes being built fit into the development and the surrounding environment?
The pot of gold at the end of this particular rainbow is that proper planning and  investment in sustainable construction can help create jobs, cut costs, reduce carbon emissions and reduce waste.  However, this is still a niche market where fixed costs remain high because we have not yet begun to realise economies of scale, where there is still relatively little that is definitive because the industry is still learning about what works, and where whole life costs are not always taken into consideration.
The construction industry adapts and innovates to meet challenges; it always has.  But this time, the challenges are different.  The elephant in the room that is impossible to ignore is the credit crunch.  How can the industry continue to build responsibly and sustain itself while keeping control of costs?

Obviously, we feel that recipro can play a huge part in helping to lower costs, whilst being sustainable in the construction industry.  As supporters of the project, the NFB also believe this.  Watch out for the second part of this article, coming soon!

Filed Under: environment, industry Tagged With: , ,