Every year the push towards a more ‘green’ society seems to gather pace. Electric cars, wind farms and carbon footprint reductions are just some of the eco watchwords banded about in media channels everyday.

 

Decades of reliance on fossil fuels coupled with the possibility of climate change means that future generations will have to take up the sustainability torch and see through the job that has already been started. This has had and continues to have, profound consequences for the construction industry.

 

Words such as ‘sustainability’ and ‘eco friendly’ are fast becoming part of the everyday vocabulary of today’s building professional who is gaining valuable knowledge of cheaper, greener methods of construction.

 

Figures provided by Google show that approximately 18,000 people in the UK search for ‘sustainable homes’ on the internet every month. If you add to that ‘green builders’ (14,800 searches) and ‘sustainable construction’ (8,100 searches) you start to understand people are paying more than just lip service to sustainable construction practice. Cost savings from renewable resources and correct design, make having a sustainable home attractive from both an environmental point of view and a financial one. This demand is fuelling a changing pattern in the construction industry with firms offering more and more in the way of sustainable provision.

 

The idea of being more environmentally friendly, particularly in the construction industry, is not necessarily a modern concept. The energy crisis of the 1970’s as well as a new awareness of potentially damaging climate change, led to a sustainable ‘push’ forty years ago. Perhaps little has changed with our present day overreliance on fossil fuels causing relentless price inflation over fears of scarcity and an ensuing desire to create greener, more renewable sources of energy.

 

Closer to home, there are lots of things we can do as individuals and businesses to help protect the environment. Most of us understand the benefits of recycling and trying to minimise our carbon footprint. From our companies’ point of view, the OBAS brand of adhesives and cleaning products are completely bio degradable and therefore eco friendly; ensuring we play our part in preserving the environment whilst maintaining all the effectiveness you would expect from an OBAS branded product. We are also able to supply an organic range of workwear that has been produced and distributed with minimal carbon footprint and a number of construction site ‘tubs’ produced from recycled plastics.

 

See the UK Green Building Council video for where Green Construction may be going long term here: http://youtu.be/aLO_gI6tJLc