The 2012 Olympics And Recycled Concrete

Introduction

Mention the phrase demolition to almost any person and the image that promptly comes to mind is a vision of a structure being blown up and collapsing to the floor. Many people have said that they would really like to press the button, to trigger the explosive units which bring a disused property to the floor. Most of the time what comes down, must go up and we are seeing many unsightly buildings being demolished making way for potential future development, often during a regeneration project.

For organizations that over many years have established their business around the demolition of architectural structures, the demolition industry is now far more reaching than just blowing up outdated buildings. When the building is demolished the tremendous task of site clearance begins and in a community where consideration of the environmental effects are high on most peoples agenda, the material residues as a result of demolition ought to be separated for recycling purposes. This will likely include such materials as steel, wood, plastic, brickwork and concrete.

The majority of the materials are bulked up and transported into the appropriate recycling plants for reprocessing. Materials such as bricks and concrete are generally crushed and become a recycled concrete aggregate substance completely ready for reuse in the making of new roadways or structures. Increasingly though, via advances in technological development, residues like rubble to be recycled have to meet a very high specification for reuse in construction projects.

When crushed, the different sizes of recycled aggregate will determine the likely usage potential of the product. Large sizes could possibly be used as decorative rockery products in landscaping whilst much finer, almost shingle like product can be utilised to provide a bedding for pipe laying or for a layer in road construction. Through an ever-increasing variety of opportunities identified for the reuse of recycled aggregate, the entire demolition and construction industry is generating a significant contribution to sustainable development.

Reasons Behind the Increased Focus on Recycling from Construction and Demolition Projects

In 1996, UK Government imposed a levy on all waste materials going to landfill. The duty is paid out on top of regular gate charges for waste being disposed in landfill and since its launch the cost has risen annually. When first introduced, the typical level of tax for general waste materials going to landfill was �7 per tonne and �2 per tonne for inert substances. The tax is designed to motivate commercial and industrial companies and local authorities collecting from households, to divert waste away from landfill for recycling. In April ’09, the common level of landfill tax increased to �40 per tonne and is scheduled to increase every year by �8 per tonne until 2013. The reduced rate of tax incurred upon any inert materials going to landfill for example concrete and soils, has stayed relatively stable recently and is presently at �2.50 per tonne.

Nonetheless, the weight factor alone of a bulk load of these inert products going directly to landfill will ensure that the full cost of disposal becomes horrendously expensive and so even in the demolition and construction arena, diverting waste from landfill is a top priority. The arrival of landfill tax has been a key driver in encouraging greater diversion of inert materials from landfill, to be used in sustainable development projects.

Most companies in the industry have extended their business to become demolition and site clearance contractors, to provide the full range of services.

Next time you see a demolition project happening or pass any construction site during a build programme, it will be very clear to see the quantity of waste being generated. If waste isn’t in skips, piles of rubble will be stacked high. The placing of construction waste materials in skips has been a serious issue for waste companies for many years. I have worked in the waste industry, I’ve seen skip trucks tipped backwards with the cab of the vehicle up in the air, due to the sheer overloading of waste skips with construction site waste.

Each and every year, the uk generates around 330 million tonnes of waste and approximately 90 million tonnes of this is coming from building and demolition wastes. This figure has remained reasonably steady since 2001. About two thirds of this waste is normally recycled or reused in land reclamation or agricultural development projects. Ever since the late 1990s there has been a gradual rise in the volumes of construction waste materials being recycled and this has been assisted by advances in technology that have resulted in improved crushing solutions to make more widespread use of various grades of recycled aggregates. There has been a real focus upon the United Kingdom construction sector to encourage more recycling of waste on site.

In recent years, the construction sector in general has worked hard to encourage construction site managers to put a larger focus upon recycling on site. This has led to a growth in the recycling of inert materials from site.

Before the introduction of the landfill levy almost all construction site waste including bricks and concrete was bulked up and transferred to a landfill site for disposal. No regard was given to recycling. These day there are strict restrictions across the sector, as well as an increase in environmental focus, and also the commercial benefits in making certain that this type of waste is recycled. Addititionally there is better recognition of the large choice of potential business opportunities to re-use recycled aggregates within the construction process on alternative construction projects or in areas such as landscaping or home and garden DIY. Following the demolition process, together the waste concrete, bricks, masonry etc will probably be transformed into a recycled concrete aggregate. Recycling of aggregates has become a common process for demolition contractors.

To recycle concrete aggregate to a high grade and resalable product, it needs to be totally free of other contaminants such as wood, paper, card, steel and other general waste materials. The final product must conform to the specifications of British Standard BS 8500. The process of recycling the concrete can usually be achieved in one of two ways. Some demolition contractors will install a crushing device on the demolition site, whereas some contractors will prefer to transport the waste to be recycled, to their premises for segregation for recycling or re-use. On projects where demolition and new construction is to occur at the same location, the contractor is likely to position a crushing machine on site to avoid incurring additional transportation costs in taking the material to a sorting and crushing facility.

Check the credentials of potential building demolition companies before confirming their appointment to undertake your project.

The Growing Need for High Quality Recycled Aggregate

Before starting the crushing procedure, it needs to be determined what the end product will be used for to ensure that the recycled aggregate is to meet the required standards. There is huge demand for recycled aggregate to be used during the construction process. As a product, recycled concrete aggregate can be utilised for virtually any form of concrete structural function, road surfacing or pipe laying project. Having passed through the crusher the pieces of aggregate can be sorted by size. Bigger pieces may be retained as a cosmetic product for use in landscaping rockery projects, or they may be passed back through the crusher to be crushed to a reduced size. The smaller sized pieces of recycled aggregate might be suited to use as a gravel on new construction projects, road laying or driveways at home. The crushing machines are now capable of achieving high quality small aggregate grades such as the production of a 20-5mm gravel which can be bagged and used in the garden at home or bought in bulk as part of projects involving new concrete production. The advances in technology mean that the recycling of aggregates for other uses such as a simple gravel product or for use in concrete products has greatly reduced the need to dig quarries to mine for gravel.

The interest in top quality crushed aggregate is growing. There are key standards in place which are focused upon improving the recycled aggregate sector. Through research and improvement, more widespread uses are now being discovered for the employment of recycled aggregate. No more is concrete, just concrete. What we are talking about now a wide range of distinct grades of recycled aggregate, which range from the large sections of aggregate to very specific 6f2 recycled concrete which can be employed as a sub-base material for construction jobs, or 20-5mm recycled aggregate, which is a gravel and can be used in road construction or at home on driveways. As well as being used as a mix for road construction, recycled aggregate is being used as bedding for pipe laying or foundation material prior to construction projects starting. In achieving such good quality grades the 20-5mm recycled aggregate can be used as an aggregate base in highway building and the quality meets the specifications required to allow its reuse in concrete production. The 20-5mm recycled aggregate is a very versatile product.

One of the important criteria when using recycled aggregate is selecting the right specification for your task. By way of example, when making use of 20-5mm coarse graded aggregate as a highway foundation, the thickness of the layer demanded must be determined to tolerate traffic flows. Traffic flow on a motorway is going to be significantly different to that of a country road. One good reason aggregate produced to a 20-5mm specification is employed as a road base is that it aids good drainage. Once the recycled aggregate is installed, appropriate layers of asphalt or concrete can be laid across it to create the road surface.

In recent years, in the United Kingdom we seem to have more rain than sunshine and as a consequence the selected aggregate must have the capacity to tolerate variances in temperatures and conditions e.g. dampness for long periods, torrential downpours, long dry spells. With its good drainage characteristics, the recycled 20-5mm product may be the perfect choice for many sand and gravel applications including, pipe bedding, driveways and footpaths, landscaping, and also for use in ready mixed and precast concrete products. With its drainage qualities, 20-5mm recycled aggregate is a versatile product.

There is increasing demand for different recycled concrete grades to be used in various construction projects.

Recycled Aggregates and the 2012 Olympic games

In its bid for the 2012 Olympic Games, London placed sustainability as the focus of its bid. The bid team identified a big opportunity to boost awareness of climate change and the problems which encircle it, and bring it to the World’s attention. With the eyes of the Entire world watching, the Olympics present an exceptional chance to put across important points regarding sustainability. During the whole growth and development of the Olympics project, there is a determination to make 2012 the most sustainable Olympics ever held. This focus began when planning the design and build programmes for the facilities and venues, the transport links and network, the hosting of the Games themselves and will conclude by leaving behind a long lasting heritage of a sustainable healthy environment.

Since London was awarded the Games, all companies associated with the development requirements, from the design of the Olympic Arena, the Olympic Village and transportation links to the venues have been encouraged upon guaranteeing the use wherever possible of sustainable materials. Throughout the entire Olympic build programme construction managers have worked hard to identify suitable sustainable materials for use in the build programme. By the end of the overall project we will see some clearly obvious cases of the use of sustainable products.

Similarly there will be many more that are much less visible, and furthermore, many which will be not visible at all. One of those products which visitors to the games and its numerous locations will not even consider how recycled aggregates are employed as part of the overall construction project. But designers and specifiers of resources to be used in the build programme will be secure in the knowledge that they have selected sustainable products which include, the most appropriate recycled concrete aggregates as part of the project. With its recognized qualities, let’s hope that somewhere in the global TV coverage the 20-5mm recycled aggregate gets a mention somewhere, somehow.

Conclusion

How times have developed recently in the demolition and construction sector. Businesses have been required to change to meet challenging environmental specifications. As with nearly every segment, new laws and legislation dictate the benchmarks to which your business must aspire, if it is to achieve success.

Businesses engaged in the production of recycled concrete aggregate aren’t any different. These are categorised as processed materials and must conform to a particular product specification which can be used in the construction process. The standard BS8500-2 offers a full specification for the uses of recycled concrete aggregates in concrete, although with such a vast range of recycled aggregates an all encompassing specification for the use of these aggregates is yet to be determined. The most important thing is that the industry does not stand still and wait for the specifications to be finalised. The versatility of recycled aggregates means that demolition contractors operating crushing plants are seeking to identify markets through which to sell their recycled products. The advances in crusher technology and machinery has seen a big increase in the options now available in offering large chunks of recycled aggregate for landscape gardening use in rockeries, down to a gravel type 20-5mm recycled aggregate with its good drainage qualities for use in highway construction and driveways. The demolition and construction industry now places sustainability at the forefront of its future development projects.

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