Lightweight construction manufacturer, Etex, has appointed Oliver Cripps as its new Head of Sustainability, UK&I to support its leading brands, including Siniat.

In his role at Etex, Oliver will be focused on driving the company’s sustainability agenda, heightening its environmental credentials for its operations and product solutions, decreasing reliance on raw materials and sharing his expertise to develop the capabilities of the entire Etex team.

Cripps brings 25 years of experience in sustainability across a variety of sectors, including tourism, land management and manufacturing. His previous roles include Senior Sustainability Manager at Dyson Technology where he led sustainability for the New Product Innovation and Research teams, and experience working with global furniture manufacturer, MillerKnoll to support R&D and corporate sustainability.

Cripps joins at a critical time for Etex as its multi-million-pound Siniat facility moves into the next phase of construction. The factory has been designed with sustainability at its core and will utilise a rainwater harvesting system, best-in-class machinery will be used to reduce energy consumption, as well as ambitions for a fully electric forklift fleet.

The extra space will also support Etex’s plasterboard manufacturing brand Siniat to further increase post-consumer recycled gypsum beyond its current market-leading level.

Cripps commented: “One of the largest factors that drove me to consider the opportunity with Etex is its dedication to building a better, more sustainable future. The building materials industry relies heavily on raw materials which have a significant environmental footprint. However, Etex takes responsibility for the challenge, has a groupwide programme to reduce its footprint, and is committed to using innovation to meet its ambitions.

In fact, Etex has already committed 50% of its innovation fund to focus on sustainability, which is a clear example of how Etex uses sustainability as a guiding compass of business transformation and makes concrete investments to reach its goals.”

Andy Mudie, Etex’s Head of Marketing UK & Ireland, said: “Oliver has a diverse career history to draw on and, while he has in-depth experience of sustainability in manufacturing, he also brings a fresh perspective to our industry. While the construction sector has made changes for the better, our sector needs a seismic shift in how we tackle the climate crisis.

“Oliver’s new position as Head of Sustainability will leverage his knowledge, expertise and stakeholder management skills both across Etex’s Building Performance division and with key UK customers. We’re looking forward to supporting him in his career here.”

Oliver’s appointment follows the release of the business’ annual sustainability scorecard reporting that last year, Etex’s relative carbon emissions (scope 1 and 2) were down 5.7% on 2020’s and 21.7% on 2010’s figures, surpassing the sector target proposed for 2025 (20%).

For more insights on Etex’s sustainability initiatives, see here: https://etex-bp.co.uk/sustainability/