With statistics regularly quoted about the amount of waste we are all sending to landfill, businesses are looking to play their part in reducing waste and operating more efficiently. The house building industry is working to meet these challenges throughout the whole construction process.
There are three basic strategies for dealing with waste: reduce, reuse and recycle. Waste reduction is the ideal, identifying possible waste streams early on in the build process. Scheduling and estimation play a big part. Better communication between building professionals to ensure exact calculations of materials can mean that waste is prevented at source.
Freefoam has recently helped Key Partnership Homes do exactly this at its new site at Caleb Close, Luton.
Freefoam supplier, Willmott’s of Reading, identified during the specification process that the standard 5m cladding board would be uneconomical and an inefficient use of materials. George Petts, Willmott’s business development manager, explained “With many of the units requiring 3m lengths we quickly estimated that a 6m cladding board would work much better for this development and considerably reduce waste. We work closely with Freefoam and with the volumes specified for this site they were happy to manufacture this bespoke order.”
The first 25 properties of a 224-unit site have now been completed, featuring Freefoam Fortex embossed cladding and white roofline range. The mix of affordable rent and shared ownership tenures, built on behalf of Paradigm Housing Group, features the popular Double Shiplap board in Argyll Brown on both house and apartment units alongside white PVC fascia and soffit.
Freefoam commercial director, Colin St John, summarised: “Listening and responding to the needs of our customer is part of our DNA. As responsible manufacturers we were delighted that on this occasion we were able to support our customer to make a significant contribution to the reduction of site waste. This project is just one more example of how Freefoam are willing to work in partnership with our suppliers and housebuilders to adapt products that will meet the needs of all parts of the supply chain and deliver long-lasting sustainable benefits.”
