Industry needs to embrace effects of climate change

Building products will have to be changed to meet future climate changes, and demand for products that can withstand these changes will undoubtedly rise, said environment minister Michael Meacher.

Speaking at the Construction Industry Research and Information Association's Climate change and the housing industry - how to deal with the problem conference, Meacher said climate change is a real and immediate threat.

The Construction Products Association's (CPA) policy development executive Rita Singh said: "We have to move with the changing environment but we don't yet know what the changes will be. Manufacturers are aware of the potential problems climate change could bring, but as there is no concrete evidence to work from they can't act on it.

"If the government can give us targets to work towards then that would be ideal. You can't change products over night, so it needs to be a long-term strategy, a step-by-step approach. What we don't want is to be set a new target every year," said Singh.

RMC is concerned about climate change, as David Evans, RMC's UK head of environment, told CJ: "Climate change, its causes and effects, undoubtedly have a big impact on the manufacture and design of housing products. RMC is constantly looking at ways it can cut energy consumption to reduce CO2 emissions and increase sustainability.

"We take it incredibly seriously and our work includes looking across the entire supply chain - starting with cutting our energy consumption in product manufacture, looking at where we can recycle material, and enhancing the environmental performance of the product during its lifetime. We are fortunate that concrete already has a head start over competitive materials such as steel, as it is extremely thermally efficient."

Some examples of RMC's work in this area include the manufacture of its eco-uniloc paving range, designed specifically to let water permeate through to the ground underneath rather than sit on top of hard paving areas such as driveways or patios. RMC's Russell roof tiles team is developing tiles specifically to fit solar panel roofing systems. It has worked in tandem with solar panel designers and housebuilders to design the product and has two test projects running.

RMC Concrete Products general manager Paul Rosie added: "We have seen increased demand for the eco-uniloc product over the past 18 months. As a manufacturer it is our job to spot the trends in the market and make sure that we not only provide products that are energy efficient, but ones that are produced in an energy-efficient way."