There’s no shortage of choices to make when it comes to a construction project. Some of these decisions you are faced with during a construction will revolve around materials – and it’s important to make a good choice. Choosing materials wisely will leave your project in good stead to be durable, functional and aesthetic. Crucially, your decisions will also factor into the environmental impact made by your construction. As the need for eco-friendly materials and practice becomes glaringly more apparent in every industry, the selection of material becomes a more weighted choice. Choosing eco-friendly building materials is an effective component of lowering a building project’s carbon footprint. As regulatory attention increasingly focuses on construction projects’ carbon emissions, this is becoming a must for many builders.
Recycled Materials
When it comes to environmentally friendly building supplies, it can be hard to top recycled materials. Mining is recognised as having a significant environmental impact, so the use of recycled metals in construction has an important reduction on the demand for metals. Recycled metals retain their properties, even when they have been through the process several times – this is true of steel and aluminium indefinitely. This means builders need not worry whether selecting recycled metals will impact the structural integrity of their project. When compared using recycled to newly forged steel supplies, 75 per cent less energy is used each time the same metal is repurposed.
Concrete
Created from a mixture of aggregate gravel and cement, concrete offers strength, durability, fire-resistance and versatility in a building material. Its structural integrity in wide variety of applications have made it a go-to construction material for builders across the world, regardless of the scale or focus of their construction.
Concrete does have a number of drawbacks when considering its eco-friendliness. It requires chemical sealing to be waterproofed and some pollutive processes are used in its manufacturing. To minimise its impact in your construction project, use it in conjunction with other environmentally friendly materials.
Builders may also choose to use precast concrete slabs in their projects to further limit their environmental impact. Prefabrication of the slabs takes place in a controlled factory environment, which sharply reduces the possibility of cracks and structural faults, lessening the likelihood of wastage. Production and assembly require less energy than other more conventional options.
Structural Insulated Panels
Popular for usage in commercial and residential constructions, structural insulated panels consist of a large piece of foam laid between layers of plywood, strand board and cement. A structural insulated panel offers more strength than traditional framing options and is thought to conserve around 50 percent more energy due to their level of insular quality. Although SIP’s generally come with a higher price tag up front, they are faster to install – this is in part because they don’t require specialised tools like some other framing options. By choosing to work with SIP’s builders can avoid traditional lumber and insulation wall materials, which are all too frequently environmentally detrimental.
Increasing environmental conscientiousness in civil, commercial and residential construction is crucial to the future of building and the world. For more information on the increasing role of environmentally friendly materials in construction, get in touch with the team at Cameron Constructions.
