Human health and planetary health are by very definition inter-related… we can’t have one without the other.

The impacts and implications of the widespread use of plastics in the construction industry are just beginning to be understood. These impacts are prevalent across the whole life cycle; from material extraction, manufacturing and delivery; to toxicity and fire hazards from products in use e.g. hydrogen cyanide; and continue through to end of life – disposal, recycling or re-use. The construction industry is the largest user of plastic, with 20% of plastic waste coming from the construction sector. It is estimated we produce globally 300MT of plastic annually with 50% of this being single use.

We are not advocating a ‘plastic-free’ built environment. We are material agnostic, and champion optimum outcomes for sustainability. However, we do advocate an approach that wherever possible the use of plastic products in construction should be confined to specialist high value, low volume application areas such as binders, seals, tapes, gaskets and services. Basically, to areas where the use of the plastic derived products can significantly enhance the overall performance of the building and where alternatives are not readily available.

Broadening this out, we look at what constitutes a healthy product. Is effective source control just as important as good ventilation? What does a healthy building look like? What monitoring should be conducted, and at what cost? 

We then look at the bigger picture and examine what are the impacts of construction on our carbon budgets. Are we on track to make the reductions we need to? What are the embodied carbon figures for construction? How do we measure embodied carbon and how does the circular economy impact on all of this?

Programme          

13:00 : Registration

13:30 : Welcome and introduction from the Chair – Simon Corbey, Associate Director, Alliance for Sustainable Building Products

13:40 : Reducing plastic in the built environment – Gary Newman, Executive Chair, Alliance for Sustainable Building Products

14:00 : What is a healthy product? – Ian Mawditt, Director, Four Walls 

14:20 : Healthy buildings – Dyson Centre for Neonatal Care and Woodland Trust HQ – Hester Brough, Project Architect, Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios 

14:40 : Measuring and monitoring for health and well-being – Laura Roberts, Chemist, PPM Technology

15:00 : Refreshment                                                                                       

15:30 : A carbon portrait of construction – Jannik Giesekam, Research Fellow, University of Leeds and CIE-MAP

• An update on progress in reducing carbon emissions from the UK built environment
• A review of the carbon targets set by UK construction firms
• An overview of guidance and best practice on reducing whole life carbon on construction projects

15:50 : An update on the ICE database – Craig Jones, Director, Circular Ecology

16:10 : The circular economy in construction – Katherine Adams, ASBP                  

• A view on the most beneficial ciricular economy strategies for the many different types of products and buildings  
• What are the critical success factors for embedding a circular economy                  
• How do we move from rhetoric to practice

16:30 : Discussion: How to reduce plastic in the built environment?

17:00 : Close

This event is held in partnership with

What did our delegates say about last year's seminar?

“Excellent exposure to real life solutions underpinned with technical information"
"Excellent range of speakers and quality of delivery"
“Lots and lots of useful information. New and Old to be reminded upon, although pushing my technical knowledge it was great to hear the science behind it!”

SPECIAL OFFERS:

BOOK 3 PLACES FOR THE PRICE OF 2!

Book your places online as normal and we will deduct the cost of the 3rd place once your booking is received. This offer may not be used in conjunction with other offers.

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Book before the 3rd of September 2018 to benefit from discounted rates. See Event Fees below for details. 

Above photo: The Dyson Centre for Neonatal Care, Bath