The Concrete Sustainability Council (CSC) awarded the certification to the Holcim plants in Kirchheim unter Teck and Stuttgart-Neckarhafen.
In June, the CSC expanded its certification system for concrete to include the 'R-Module'. With CSC-certified concrete, additional points for the use of concrete with recycled aggregates can be earned for building certifications from DGNB (the German Sustainable Building Council) or the Building Research Establishment's BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method).
Holcim Germany says that recycled concrete (R-concrete) has a comparable performance to concrete with natural aggregates and can therefore be used equally in many applications.
The company, a founding member of the Concrete Sustainability Council (CSC), adds that conservation of natural resources is now increasingly alongside reduced CO2 emissions at the centre of corporate responsibility on sustainability. All Holcim Germany's cement plants, nine production facilities for aggregates, 25 ready-mixed concrete plants and its mobile concrete truck are already CSC-certified.
The Kirchheim unter Teck and Stuttgart-Neckarhafen plants are in the south-west German state of Baden-Württemberg. Holcim Germany says that these plants were chosen very deliberately for recycled concrete (R-concrete) production as the issue has been high-profile in the state for some time, with more municipalities and cities including it in tenders for municipal building projects.
Holcim's partner in the region, Kirchheim unter Teck-based Heinrich Feess, has over 60 years of experience in demolition and recycling and is a 2016 German Environment Prize winner.
Recycled material from Holcim has been used in the Rauner Campus project, a combination of renovation and construction of a community school in Kirchheim/Teck
“The requirements for sustainable building are increasing all the time,” said Werner Spilles, head of ready-mixed concrete at Holcim Germany. "Recycled concrete offers the opportunity to make an important contribution to the circular economy.
"We look forward to new exciting projects in which we use recycled aggregates and can best combine them with our climate-friendly or climate-neutral concretes."
