Concrete Perspectives April – May 2022
1. CONCRETE NEWS
European Sustainable Energy Week 2022
Organised by the European Commission, EU Sustainable Energy Week (EUSEW) is the biggest annual event dedicated to renewables and efficient energy use in Europe. This year, EUSEW will return on 26 – 30 September in a new hybrid format, with both participants and speakers able to participate onsite and online. The event will comprise a high-level Policy Conference, the EUSEW Awards, and the third European Youth Energy Day as well as opportunities for 1:1 meetings, exhibition stands and other networking activities.
Find out more and register here.
TOTEM – an online Tool to Optimise the Total Environmental impact of Materials
In order to help the Belgian construction sector to objectify and reduce the environmental impact of buildings, the three Belgian regions, specifically OVAM, Brussels Environment and the Public Service of Wallonia developed the TOTEM tool (Tool to Optimise the Total Environmental impact of Materials).
It aims to assess the environmental impact of urban buildings throughout their lifecycle and to optimise architectural choices. Moreover, it seeks to reduce the environmental impacts of a construction and renovation project by comparing relevant design options.
When evaluating buildings, TOTEM takes into consideration four core aspects:
- the production phase of the materials used,
- the on-site implementation phase (from transportation from the plant to the site to implementation of the material in the building),
- the use phase of the building, including maintenance of materials and consumption of energy,
- the end-of-life phase of the building, including demolition or waste treatment.
The core objective of the tool is to provide information enabling comparisons with other construction projects. Its database is available to all free of cost and can be accessed at: www.totem-building.be.
CarbonZero Global Conference and Exhibition – register now!
CarbonZero Global Conference and Exhibition (10 – 11 November, Pestana Palace Hotel & National Monument, Lisbon) focuses on the circular use of resources, demonstrating the best and the most cost effective solutions to help shape the construction and cement industry for a future aimed at decarbonization.
The event will showcase the benefits of using alternative fuels for the cement industry and advocate for recycling by using alternative raw materials (fly ash, pozzolana, GGBFS, sludge, rice husk, construction recycled material) that can add to or replace clinker in cement production or that can be used in construction.
For BIBM members:
As BIBM joins the conference as a partner, you can register as a delegate with an extra discount of 10%. Claim your discount at carbonzero@industrylink.eu mentioning the code BIBM10. The ticket also includes accommodation and spouse program. Program and other details on www.industrylink.eu.
2. BIBM NEWS
BIBM Congress 2023 in Amsterdam – save the date!
BIBM is delighted to announce the date and venue of the next 24th BIBM Congress:
DATE: 27 to 29 September 2023
VENUE: Okura Hotel , Amsterdam (the Netherlands)
HOST: BIBM – Federation of the European Precast Concrete Industry
ORGANISER: BCF – Building Congress Forum
Official hashtag: #BIBMCongress2023
Please mark the dates on your agendas. We are currently building our dedicated website (www.bibmcongress.eu). More information will follow soon!
Public consultations and feedbacks
Certification of carbon removals – EU rules
This initiative will propose EU rules on certifying carbon removals. It will develop the necessary rules to monitor, report and verify the authenticity of these removals. The aim is to expand sustainable carbon removals and encourage the use of innovative solutions to capture, recycle and store CO2 by farmers, foresters and industries. This represents a necessary and significant step towards integrating carbon removals into EU climate policies.
BIBM Input can be found here.
EU forests – new EU Framework for Forest Monitoring and Strategic Plans
The aim of this initiative is to develop an EU-wide forest observation framework to provide open access to detailed, accurate, regular and timely information on the condition and management of EU forests, and on the many products and ecosystem services that forests provide.
This information will lead to more data-driven decision-making on forests. It is expected to increase public trust in forest management, reduce illegal logging, incentivise and reward more sustainable forest management, and support the adaptation of forests to climate change.
Feedback deadline: 06 May 2022.
Microplastics pollution – measures to reduce its impact on the environment
This initiative aims to tackle microplastics unintentionally released into the environment. It will focus on labelling, standardisation, certification and regulatory measures for the main sources of these plastics.
Public consultation deadline: 17 May 2022.
Construction products – review of EU rules
The Construction Products Regulation lays down EU-wide rules for marketing construction products. This initiative will review these rules. It includes: addressing the issues identified in the 2019 evaluation and improving how the single market for construction products functions.
The aim is to unlock the sector’s growth and jobs potential, promote environmental goals as part of the Green Deal and Circular Economy Action Plan, and possibly promote product safety.
Feedback deadline: 28 June 2022.
3. BIBM AGENDA
| MAY 2022 | JUNE 2022 |
| 03/05: ECP TF Sustainable Concrete Joint Workshop on Decarbonisation Confcall | 03/06: Concrete Dialogue, Workshop 2 “Carbon uptake in cement and concrete -Concrete as a carbon sink” (closed event) Brussels (BE) |
| 06/05: Concrete Dialogue, Workshop 1 “Carbon uptake in cement and concrete – CCUS” (closed event) Brussels (BE) | 09/06: CEN/TC 229 WG4 – Horizontal Confcall |
| 10/05: ECP Board Brussels (BE) | 16/06: CPE General Assembly Brussels (BE) |
| 11/05: CA4BM Final Joint Meeting Brussels (BE) | 23/06: CEN/TC 350 WG3 – Products Confcall |
| 16/05: BIBM Communication Commission Confcall | 24/06: CEN/TC 350 Plenary Confcall |
| 19/05: The Concrete Initiative Confcall | 27/06: ECP General Assembly Brussels (BE) |
| 19/05: CA4BM Communication group Confcall | 29/06: CEN/TC 229 WG1 – Structural Confcall |
| 23/05: BIBM Technical Commission Confcall | 29/06-01/07: CEN/TC 104 SC1 and Plenary Zurich (CH) |
| 30-31/05: BIBM General Assembly Epernon (FR) |
4. WEBINARS AND OTHER EVENTS MAY/JUNE 2022
| DATE | ORGANISER | INFORMATION |
| 01 – 30 May | Concrete Expo | Concrete Expo, UK Construction Week Registration (ExCeL, London) |
| 10 May | The Concrete Centre | Alternative reinforcement strategies Registration |
| 11 May | Euractiv | Achieving the energy transition through active energy efficiency: Pragmatic, cost-effective technologies for everything from sector integration to buildings Registration |
| 11 May | EDA | The infinite life of metals in construction Registration |
| 13 May | Open Society European Policy Institute, The Club of Rome, SYSTEMIQ | Can the EU foster a global green transition? The international implications of achieving the European Green Deal Registration |
| 17 May | Euractiv | Sustainable and healthy buildings – Reaching the goals of the EU Green Deal Registration |
| 17 May | Euractiv | A revised EPBD – Faster decarbonisation of the EU’s building stock? Registration |
| 18 – 19 May | European Commission | European Vocational Skiils Week Registration |
| 25 May | The Concrete Centre | Fresh Concrete series (part 3): Exploring new approaches to making and using concrete Registration |
| 30 May – 05 June | European Commission | EU Green Week Registration |
| 03 June | European Commission | Level(s): Get going with the eLearning and Calculation and Assessment Tool Registration |
| 09 – 12 June | European Commission | The New European Bauhaus Festival Registration |
| 16 June | ECOS | Sustainable by default – ecodesign as a tool for change Registration |
| 22 June | The Concrete Centre | Fresh Concrete series (part 4): Exploring new approaches to making and using concrete Registration |
5. BIBM PARTNERS NEWS
NEB Lab: Regulatory analysis and experimentation
This Commission-led NEB Lab project analyses how the regulatory framework on European, national, regional or local level can support the development of New European Bauhaus (NEB) projects.
The pilot project focuses on the built environment and construction ecosystem. Other sectors, such as energy intensive industries, etc., will follow.
The Bauhaus community developed a survey (deadline: 30 June 2022) to map the challenges and opportunities practitioners face with local and EU legislation in the built environment and construction sector. Feel free to submit any relevant report, study or policy paper. Based on the outcomes, the Commission will aim to address regulatory barriers at different legislative levels together with political actors in the Member States.
Votes open for the New European Bauhaus Prizes 2022
This year, two of the prizes will be determined by the public – one prize in strand A ‘Awards’ and one in strand B ‘Rising Stars’. Voting is open to everyone until 16 May 2022 at 18:00 CET.
There will be prizes in 4 different categories that reflect the thematic axes of transformation identified during the New European Bauhaus’ co-design phase and are inspired by the views and experiences of thousands of EU citizens and organisations: (1) Reconnecting with nature; (2) Regaining a sense of belonging; (3) Prioritising the places and people that need it the most and; (4) Shaping a circular industrial ecosystem and supporting life-cycle thinking
Learn more and vote for your favourite project here.
CPE Digital Construction webinar
On 30 March, Construction Products Europe held another Digital Construction online event, this time dedicated to real life cases where companies and associations have used data templates and Smart CE mark CEN Workshop Agreement.
Watch all the presentations and subscribe to the CPE YouTube channel here.
If you are interested digital and circular construction, BIM and CE marking, please follow CPE on their Twitter and LinkedIn channels.
6. LIVE FROM THE EUROPEAN UNION
The European Commission joins the EU Climate Pact
The European Commission (EC) – an organisation of 32,000 people with offices in every EU country – marked Earth Day 2022 with a Climate Pact pledge to become climate neutral by 2030. To achieve its goal, the Commission will make buildings more energy efficient, start generating its own green energy through photovoltaic panels and solar water heating, get smart about work-related travel, and green its IT infrastructure.
The European Climate Pact is bringing people together to build a more sustainable Europe for all. People, organisations, businesses, and cities can get involved in the Pact by making a pledge to take real action.
You can learn more on how to sign the Climate Pact pledge here.
2nd meeting of the High-Level Construction Forum
On 6 April, the High-Level Construction Forum (HLCF) held its 2nd meeting to discuss the next steps for the co-creation of the green, digital and resilient transition pathway for the EU construction industry ecosystem.
Over 150 representatives from industry, EU countries, social partners, the EC, and other stakeholders came together virtually for this event. The Commission presented the results from the recent consultation on the scenarios for a transition pathway for a resilient, greener and more digital construction ecosystem, which was followed by a discussion on the resilience of the sector. Finally, representatives from EU countries and industry presented their pledges and good practices on specific green, digital and resilient topics.
The full report can be found here.
IPCC released its latest climate report
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is now in its sixth assessment cycle, in which is producing the Sixth Assessment Report (AR6) with contributions by its three Working Groups. The Working Group III contribution, Climate Change 2022: Mitigation of Climate Change, was released on 4 April 2022.
The report highlighted the need to cut emissions released by 43 per cent this decade directly. But it also recognises the need for carbon removal to help address emissions that are extremely hard to eliminate, such as through industrial processes. For more information, please read the press release and report.
7. OUTSTANDING PRECAST CONCRETE PROJECTS
Tesla ‘Giga Berlin’ factory
Tesla Gigafactory Berlin-Brandenburg (“Giga Berlin”) is a European manufacturing plant for Tesla in Grünheide (Germany) near the Berlin Brandenburg Airport. It is Tesla’s first manufacturing location in Europe. The factory was officially opened on 22 March 2022.
This short planning and construction time was possible by the use of precast concrete parts. The prefabricated parts were transported to Grünheide by truck and rail to be set up precisely on the construction site.