The problem of stolen manhole covers in Turkey may seem like an unlikely starting point for a new way for buildings to withstand earthquakes and address environmental issues in the construction industry, but when a Turkish businessman heard about a new material that prevents thefts, it sparked an idea.
Cast iron is traditionally used to make manhole covers that protect sewer systems. But back in 2010, a spate of scrap metal lid thefts in Türkiye meant an equally powerful alternative had to be used to secure them. When Engin Yesil read about this super-strong compound in news reports, he wondered whether it could be used to build buildings capable of withstanding earthquakes. A great danger in Türkiye.
Yesil began manufacturing the composite, known as Renco (short for “renewable composite”) which consists of up to 40% reused materials including resin and fibreglass. Since 2011, more than 200 buildings have been built in Türkiye using Renko blocks, which fit together like Lego bricks and are held together with glue.
Yesil wondered if Renko had potential in the United States, and after more than a decade of research and testing, Renko was used to build an apartment complex in Palm Springs in 2023.
In addition to the ability to withstand catastrophic Category 5 hurricanes (the highest classification in the world). Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale and An increasing phenomenon due to climate change), Renco claims to be greener than other building materials. The construction sector is “by far” the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions of any sector, According to the United Nations report for the year 2023They constitute 37% of global emissions.
Renko – or regenerative compound – is a Lego-style building system that is rated to withstand a Category 5 hurricane.
Renzo
Renco weighs about 80% less than concrete, meaning more of it can be transported per truck, and it contains 82% less carbon than structural steel, according to a report by the Renco Foundation. Athens Institute for Sustainable Materials Commissioned by Renko. Embodied carbon refers to emissions released during the manufacture, transportation, and disposal of building materials.
Renko is also 100% recyclable, according to Patrick Murphy, managing director of Renko USA. He said the new compound represents a major change in building materials. “In construction, there are three ways to build, right? You have concrete, steel and wood, and it's the same thing for 100 years… so this is really the fourth way of building that has been approved,” he told CNBC. Video call.
This year, Renco will begin manufacturing in the United States for the first time, with a factory opening in Florida in the coming weeks, which can produce enough building blocks for about 9,000 medium-sized apartments.
As with other materials used in construction, Renko is not without environmental impact, with blocks currently being shipped from Türkiye to the United States while the Florida factory is being completed. While the Turkish Renco manufacturing plant operates with renewable energy, about 12% Of the electricity generated in Florida comes from nuclear power plants.
Sustainable timber
Renco is not the only company aiming to build more sustainably. On the other side of the Atlantic, a British company is designing buildings using a well-known material – wood. Architectural firm Waugh Thistleton designed its first building made of laminated timber, or CLT, in 2001, and has since built around 30 buildings in the UK, Europe and the US. Products certified by the Forest Stewardship Council, or equivalent, i.e. wood are used. It must come from forests that are managed in ways that meet a number of internationally agreed standards.
Building with wood instead of steel or concrete could cut emissions by 19%, 2024 forecast says. Study at the University of Arkansaswhile A United Nations 2023 report He urged the construction industry to switch to bio-based building materials such as timber and bricks from sustainable sources to remove carbon from the built environment.
The Black & White Building in Hackney, London is the city's tallest wooden office building, standing at six floors. Designed by architect Wu Thistleton, its embodied carbon is a third lower than similar buildings.
Forum | Wu Thistleton
“The idea that we can build from renewable materials has become increasingly important to us,” said Andrew Waugh, founder and director of Waugh Thistleton. “And then, the more I did it, the more I realized that there are health and well-being benefits to it, and that people are actually happier and healthier surrounded by natural materials compared to polystyrene ceiling tiles and… drywall (wall panels),” Wu told CNBC via video call.
But the UK has been slow to adopt wood as a building material, which is “frustrating” for Wu. About 60% of waste produced in the UK comes from the construction industry, according to Government Report 2022while Wu noticed this Building with wood produces little waste on site. And again, building with wood is not without environmental concerns: the timber used in Wu Thistleton's projects is often transported from Europe.
Building on water
Another phenomenon caused by climate change is Ocean level rise – It is exacerbated by the ground sinking at the same time.
In the independent coastal state of Monaco, known as a playground for the rich due to its low taxes, a newly built “eco-neighbourhood” known as Maritera has put sustainability at its heart. “With climate change, building on water will become a strategic approach for some coastal areas,” according to Guy Thomas Levy-Soussan, managing director of Mariterra Development, in an email to CNBC. Levy-Soussan added that the project aims to be a “model” for how coastal cities can grow responsibly.
Monaco's new Mariterra project extends into the independent country in the Mediterranean. An underwater structure known as a 'cassion' was created as a flood barrier and to encourage marine life to flourish.
Xavier Duvot | AFP | Getty Images
During construction, a technique known as the “diver” method was used, where 27-meter-high reinforced concrete structures were built in the French city of Marseille and floated to Monaco so as not to impede marine life. Levy-Soussan said that they act as flood barriers and are habitats for marine organisms.
So-called “coral reef eco-villages” have also been created. These units consist of more than 300 units, and were installed in the marine area where the project is located. Ecological 'corridors' mean fish can reach villages, while a protected species of seaweed known as posidonia has been moved to provide an ecosystem. Levy-Soussan said these environmental measures will be monitored for at least ten years and the Monaco government will use the ideas to guide future marine projects.
The future of sustainable construction
Both Wu and Murphy expect the construction industry to move toward more sustainable materials.
“It's inevitable because, you know, the better other industries get at reducing the carbon burden, the more vulnerable construction becomes an outlier,” Wu said.
Waugh founder Thistleton added that regulation could be the force the construction industry needs to become more sustainable.
the UK Green Building Council It has called on the British government to push ahead with its environmental targets for new homes, while in Singapore, for example, the government has added proposals to its mandatory energy improvement regime to include older buildings. It has previously focused on new buildings or those that have been extensively renovated.
Murphy said the industry “will have to” reduce its emissions. “The industry has gone under the radar in many ways, right? People talk about planes and cars and cows, you know, and a lot of other emissions. A lot of people don't realize how bad cement is and how bad the use of cement is. The built environment is.”
Embodied carbon has been the focus of US Environmental Protection Agency Construction company Skanska USA has developed a tool, known as EC3, to help construction projects quantify their emissions.
Dalston Works, a residential building located in east London, was designed by Waugh Thistleton. Its primary and external walls, floors and stairs are made of cross-laminated timber and the building is clad in brick in the Victorian style. The use of timber helps reduce the carbon footprint of the building.
Daniel Shearing | Wu Thistleton
The tool has encouraged some suppliers to reduce their embodied carbon, said Steve Klemm, senior vice president of project planning and sustainability at Skanska USA Building.
When Skanska was evaluating concrete companies for a large project in Seattle, it showed each company how their materials competed with each other in terms of embodied carbon, using EC3. “When different suppliers saw how their blends stacked up to each other, they voluntarily took steps to improve their blends at no cost to the consumer,” Klemm told CNBC via email.
The Vice President is optimistic about the future. “The construction industry is now doing more for sustainability than at any other time in history, or at least since the Industrial Revolution… My hope for the future is that sustainable construction is the norm and that many more people will have the opportunity to live, work and play,” Klem said. Zero carbon buildings.
