A British-made calcined clay aimed at reducing the carbon footprint of cement will be launched to the wider construction industry on Thursday 22 October. CemBlend, the product’s manufacturer, will use the Precast and Masonry Expo to reveal a commercial partnership with Hepworth Clay to distribute HepCem, a calcined clay product manufactured at Hepworth’s Crow Edge […]
Low Carbon Cement
Heavy Metal
Metals have a high carbon footprint. From the energy used in mining, moving and processing the ore, to the energy used in processing it into a finished base material – billet, coil, roll, wire or bar. Not all metals are created equal though, and even within metals types, there are variations in carbon impact. A […]
UK Carbon Borders Adjustment Mechanism
The UK Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) is a new tax due to come into effect on 1 January 2027. Its primary purpose is to prevent carbon leakage, which occurs when businesses move production overseas to countries with less stringent climate policies or lower carbon costs. By applying a comparable carbon price to certain imported […]
Social Value explained
The Importance of Social Value in Business In today’s society, businesses are increasingly expected to do more than simply generate profit. Customers, employees, investors and communities want organisations to make a positive contribution to society. This is known as social value, which refers to the wider benefits that businesses create for people, communities and the […]
New on-line webinar series
On Monday October 19th, at 10am, we’ll be launching a new monthly drop-in webinar programme, aimed at businesses who want to benefit from the opportunity that sustainability presents, but are unsure how to. ‘Unlocking Opportunities in Sustainability’ will be at 10am on every third Monday of the month, on Zoom. Each session will feature a […]
Will you be burning money again this winter?
Heating things that don’t need to be heated? Leaving lights on when no-body needs them? Letting heat escape through the doors and windows? Leaving engines and motors running? Letting compressed air leak? Using old and inefficient technology? Unless you’re a crypto billionaire, you probably can’t afford to be doing any of these things. Now is […]
What can be learned from industry’s most efficient sector?
Sawmilling – as old as the hills, unglamorous and rarely in the news. It is however an exemplar of resource efficiency, from which many sectors could learn. Why? Because virtually nothing is wasted, everything has a value and a market. That’s partly due to the versatility of timber, but largely out of necessity. Timber is […]
Pivoting your products
Imagine two competing products. Both have a similar specification and quality, similar price and availability, but one has robust ‘green’ credentials, the other hasn’t. Which one will sell better? Manufacturing a product with such credible sustainability credentials has numerous benefits: It could have lower production costs due to better efficiency It could command a higher […]
Are Biodegradable Plastics BS?
On the face of it, a biodegradable plastic might seem to be a sustainable choice for businesses and consumers, but is it? Biodegradable plastics generally come as two types – either made from a biological material such as corn starch, or made from petrochemicals. The main problem, with either type, is how the end user […]