We rely on natural resources every day, so we design our manufacturing processes to use them as efficiently as possible. From sourcing raw materials to reusing and recycling products, we work to reduce environmental impact at every stage, from material source to construction.
Dematerialisation means reducing the amount of natural resources used to manufacture each product while maintaining performance standards. This can mean altering the thickness or the design features of a product. We are continuously innovating our product design and raw material mixes to:
Example: Increasing perforation (void sizes) in bricks to use less raw material.
Example:Trialling new material mixes, including adjusted clay-to-sand ratios.
Example: Producing lighter roof tiles such as TLE which are thinner but strong.
Changes to soft mud brick frog sizes at our Todhills factory are expected to save 112 tonnes of carbon emissions per year.
For our ceramic products, drying and firing are the most energy-intensive stages of the manufacturing process. Bricks and roof tiles must be fired at high temperatures (typically 1000–1100°C) to create durable and strong ceramic products. Emissions from production come from:
Fuel used in kilns and dryers
Electricity consumption
Within our concrete and plastic product manufacturing processes, electricity is the primary fuel source so we are transforming our sites to replace fossil fuels with renewable energy sources, such as solar panels and air source heat pumps.
We are working to reduce emissions at every stage of the production process through efficiency, product design innovation and material optimisation.
We are reducing reliance on virgin materials in our packaging and logistics solutions:
We endeavour to return and reuse packaging used for internal transfers between our UK and Ireland factories.
Plastic packaging no longer uses coloured inks, improving recyclability
Where plastic must be used, we are increasing the recycled content of our bags, shrink and stretch wrap.
Many products are transported without pallets, reducing wood use
With factories located in the south, midlands and north of England, transport distances between production and construction sites can be kept to a minimum, further reducing the environmental impact of our operations.
Where possible wienerberger’s contracted road hauliers have an ISO 14001 certified Environmental Management System and use trucks fitted with technology to minimise noise and reduce emissions to Euro 6 standard. To minimise the environmental impact of transporting our products a full load delivery price incentive is used. If this is not possible, we aim to group orders to achieve a full load delivery.
When importing products from Europe we charter vessels that carry around 850,000 bricks per load, attaining lower emissions per mile than the equivalent road transport.
By using fewer virgin raw materials and improving manufacturing efficiency, we:
Conserve natural resources
Reduce carbon emissions, water consumption and waste generated
This work supports our ambition to build for what’s next: providing solutions for the built environment today, with tomorrow in mind.
