30% Post Consumer Recycled Content
Innovation overview and development
Etex Building Performance Limited, who manufacture plasterboard in the UK under the Siniat brand are leading the market in the use of Post-Consumer Recycled Content. These materials have already been used by consumers, disposed of, and then recovered for recycling. In plasterboard production, this might involve gypsum recovered from deconstructed or demolished buildings. The material is processed and reused in new plasterboard, helping to close the loop on building materials and prevent waste from ending up in landfills.
Etex recently achieved an average of 30.1% recycled gypsum in our plasterboard products (2023 data) and we are continuing to develop solutions that push this even higher. This is market leading, as the current average for the sector is currently less than 12% (GPDA, 2023 figures).
Accurate measurement and reporting of recycled content ensure transparency and credibility in sustainability claims. Recycled content is typically expressed as a percentage of the total material content in a product, calculated based on the weight of the recycled material relative to the total product weight.
Certification schemes and industry standards, such as ISO 14021, provide guidelines to ensure that these measurements are accurate and consistent. These standards help manufacturers verify and reliably communicate the recycled content of their products.
How the innovation was developed, including effective collaboration, knowledge transfer and partnership along the project team
The achievement required collaboration across the business. The Operations team have overcome barriers to the use of reclaimed material vs natural gypsum. Our Innovation team have helped to manage the mix of materials to ensure product integrity and technical performance are protected. Our Technical and Product Management teams have helped to verify the performance and track reclaim data.
Additionally we work with partners in the waste industry to take construction and demolition waste from the market to provide a resource.
The use of new technologies, processes products or techniques or novel uses of existing ones – ie. turning them in into commercially successful ideas
Rather than limiting this technology to a single product, we have standardised the use of reclaim in our UK plasterboard production.
How does the innovation provide a more environmentally friendly approach for the industry
This could include demonstrating a resource efficient solution, reduction in energy demand, reduction in embodied or whole life carbon approach.
The use of 30.1% reclaim is a more resource efficient solution and provides a platform for circular economy in the construction sector.
We work with partners in the waste industry to take construction and demolition waste from the market. This material is reprocessed into material that we can use in production. In this regard it satisfies ‘end of waste’ criteria that can demonstrate waste reduction for our customers.
Our partners accept gypsum material from any manufacturer and from across the country. We can also offer takeback services which will provide logistics support, data and verification of the destination of materials from site to our facilities.
How does the innovation provide an improvement in social value
This could be through the creation of local supply chain, apprentices, responsibly sourced materials.
The use of 30.1% reclaim in our products is an example of responsibly sourced materials. This innovation has allowed our reprocessing partners to invest in their businesses, including co-located facilities to provide reclaimed material.
How does this innovation influence future specifications to improve sustainability
We continue to develop product solutions with increasing amounts of recycled content. Our experience has provided an example to other businesses in the Etex Group and the wider sector.
We model our environmental impacts through the use of Life Cycle Assessment, published as Environmental Product Declarations (EPDS). EPDs are third party certified documents and now cover approximately 90% of our Siniat products by volume.