The first pour of ultra-low carbon concrete in the United Kingdom has taken place. Could it usher in a new, greener standard for construction?
Conducted by the cement manufacturer Ecocem, who specialise in high performance cements using low carbon solutions, and the housebuilding and general construction company Taylor Woodrow, the ultra-low carbon concrete pour is a first for the UK construction industry.
The technology is drawn from the Exegy® ultra-low carbon concrete range, Ecocem Ultra, and was developed over a period of four years by Ecocem and VINCI construction, a specialist civil engineering, construction and facilities management company.
Ecocem Ultra offers an alternative to traditional cement manufacturing processes and significantly reduces the carbon footprint of the projects in which it is used.
The new range of ultra-low carbon concrete is already in use at a Grand Paris Express pilot site, as well as in the construction of the Athletes’ Village in Paris for the 2024 Olympics.
The initial pour of the new ultra-low-carbon concrete took place as part of the first phase of North London Waste Authority’s plan to create a sustainable waste management hub and Energy Recovery Facility at Edmonton EcoPark.
The project will be a £1.2bn endeavour; compared to traditional concrete, the mix can reduce the carbon footprint of concrete by as much as 70%.
“Our Ecocem Ultra technology is already being used at scale in France, and we’re excited to now see it being adopted in the UK,” said Micheál McKittrick, Managing Director of Northern Europe for Ecocem.
Ecocem has been in operation for over 20 year; they claim their product is the greenest ultra-low carbon concrete and cement to be used at scale in Europe, able to reduce the CO2 footprint by a factor of eight.
“The cement and construction industries are developing and deploying a range of emission reduction technologies to help the UK Government reduce emissions by 78% by 2035, and reach net zero by 2050, and Ecocem will add a further dimension to these efforts,” added Mr McKittrick.
