With the race to zero amongst the British Government's key priorities, Besblock, a family-run firm based in Halesfield, a suburb of Telford, Shropshire, western England, said it was committed to doing everything in its power to lead the way in the construction sector.
With the firm's new biomass boiler expected to save nearly 6,000 tonnes of CO₂ a year and 10,000 tonnes with future investment, a suite of hybrid vehicles, and solar panels slashing Besblock energy costs by 65%, the next step was investing in low-carbon products.
Sales director Martin Fulwell said: "We are already offsetting the carbon in our production process but now we want to make sure the blocks themselves are as 'green' as possible.
"We have spent a significant sum in the last 18 months on developing new ways to refine our market-leading Star Performer block to make sure it has a sector-leading carbon footprint."
"We're reducing material use, water use, cement content and lowering carbon emissions in the factory. Whilst there is no magic solution, we are also exploring new lighter-weight structures which do not affect the performance or integrity of our blocks."
Besblock has already taken the wraps off Star Performer Foundation, a foundation block which has been two years in development and boasts high strength, low weight and zero waste - a stronger-yet-lighter block means fewer lorry movements and less resulting CO₂.
"There's also a competition amongst the delivery drivers to return the most miles per gallon plus any new additions to the fleet will be hybrid or electric. This isn't a piecemeal approach but a commitment across the board."
Besblock will work closely with the UK Green Building Council and the Building Alliance to continue its efforts at a time when the construction industry has never been more in the spotlight.
"The Government has made it very clear that this industry has to work harder than ever to make a positive impact on the environment," he continued. "We're to set the benchmark."
