Concrete production requires significant volumes of cement and is responsible for over 5% of global human-caused CO2 emissions. Reusing concrete elements from your construction projects, rather than demolishing elements and replacing them with newly produced elements, helps you to reduce waste and ensure positive impact for the environment and your organization.
Why choose circular construction services for concrete from SGS?
We enable you to:
- Reuse and extend the life of concrete elements harvested from existing old structures for application in new structures.
- Minimize construction waste.
- Reduce CO2 emissions and energy consumption .
- Reduce pressure on primary materials.
- Enhance your reputation by demonstrating your proactive approach to sustainability and corporate social responsibility.
Our Services
Establishing requirements, quality criteria and assessment methods
We establish the functional requirements, quality criteria and assessment methods to ensure safe, circular and sustainable reuse of your concrete elements. We can elaborate these assessment procedures into protocols, tailor-made for specific concrete elements.
Criteria are formulated or material performances, work methods and processes set for reuse and the qualifications of the reuse project participants (such as removal from the original structure, refurbishing and repair steps).
Verification of quality criteria and reuse requirements
We verify if the quality criteria and reuse requirements are met by performing:
- Technical inspection and analysis:We assess the condition and quality of your concrete elements and analyze their reuse potential. If needed, the reinforcement configuration can be analyzed by NDT methods.
- File check:We review work and repair plans and the qualifications of operatives to ensure that the recycling process meets the required quality standards.
- Lab testing:We conduct lab testing to determine concrete strength and durability.
- Process controls:We ensure that the reuse process is carried out effectively and efficiently.
Quality declaration
For products for which a verification method (protocol) has been developed, we can provide a quality declaration, so the parties involved in the reuse project can demonstrate independent verification of the concrete elements’ quality. The declaration is accompanied by an assessment report that demonstrates compliance with the protocol.
Why choose SGS?
As the world leader in inspection, verification, analysis and certification, we provide unrivaled expertise in circular concrete to enable you to achieve your reuse goals.
We offer years of experience and in-depth knowledge of sustainability and circular solutions.
Pilot projects and assessment protocols for concrete construction elements
Circular reuse of concrete structural elements is a new development in the construction industry. We have taken part in various pilot projects that are reusing prefab concrete elements rather than demolishing them. We also take part in platforms that promote the circular reuse of building materials, such as CB’23.
We have developed a protocol for the reuse of concrete prefab pretensioned girders from viaducts. This protocol was used for SBIR Circular Viaducts project in The Netherlands to take an in-depth look at the necessary processes to ensure that the girders were of sufficient quality for reuse in a new viaduct over a highway. We defined the assessment methods and requirements to verify the quality of the girders and issued a quality declaration, after establishing that the requirements had been met.
To find out how you can reuse your concrete structural elements and contribute towards a more sustainable world, contact us today.
