Concrete is a suitable material for a wide range of applications
As a material, concrete is versatile across many parameters, including its constituents, composition, method of manufacture, product range, method of placement, and exposure conditions for which it is designed. This versatility, combined with the inherent performance benefits of concrete, means that concrete is a suitable material for a wide range of applications in the built environment and that there is much scope for designers to optimise sustainability in each application.
This structural versatility provides the engineer, often working with the architect, enormous scope to meet the application requirements in an optimum way. As sustainability becomes increasingly important, the above versatility aspects of concrete enable the structural designer to:
Optimise material use
Minimise carbon impacts
Consider both offsite or onsite construction or a combination of the two
Facts & Fallacies
Strength, durability resilience & safety
Society expects the built environment – buildings, bridges and other infrastructure – to be enduring and safe – safety is the first priority.
Trees are the ‘lungs of the planet’. They absorb atmospheric CO2 and play a critical role in the fight against climate change. Trees, and the biodiversity that they support, are under threat from deforestation.
Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are chemicals found in many common building materials that can escape into the air and cause illness and allergic reactions.
To know if a material is really ecological, it is important to look at the whole life of the product from sourcing/extraction of raw materials, including the different processes and treatments transportation, in use maintenance and end of life.
