Verified Low Carbon Construction with Envirocon

We’re excited to announce the launch of our first Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) for our Interbloc precast construction system.

Our EPD is unique in a number of ways;

• It’s the first EPD in NZ to cover precast concrete products
• It demonstrates low embodied carbon footprint for our precast elements
• It demonstrates the impact of zero waste design, and benefits of recarbonation at end of life

In April 2022, we approached thinkstep-anz - leaders in product life cycle assessment and sustainability- to produce an EPD for Interbloc. This would focus on manufacturing with Envirocon’s CarbonSmart® sustainability system.

"Congratulations to our client EnviroconNZ for rounding off the year with a published EPD for their pre-cast concrete blocks. [Envirocon] design these blocks to reduce construction waste and make them from quality concrete that would otherwise be wasted. Less waste. Tick. Low embodied carbon. Tick. CO2 reabsorbed over their life. Tick. Lots of things to love! It’s been a great project to be part of."

thinkstep-ANZ, December 2022

The launch of the EPD shows our unique and unrivaled combination of sustainable features & benefits;

• Product Stewardship - we’re NZ’s only construction related accredited product stewardship scheme diverting high quality concrete from landfill.
• Low Carbon Construction - our CarbonSmart construction systems provide a very low embodied carbon footprint for concrete construction as demonstrated by the EPD.
• Recarbonation - our blocks reabsorb carbon throughout the structure’s life
• Zero Waste through Deconstruction - our structures can be non-destructively dismantled and reused via our unique buyback offer.

Our systems also delivers;

• Fast, Easy Installation - two people can build up to 160m2 of wall per day using standard equipment.
• Code Compliant Engineering - orthodox engineering design allows simple design and consenting processes.
• Safety and Durability - our precast elements are manufactured from high quality certified concrete, incorporating standard certified precast lifting anchors with a FoS >5 for multiple lifting.
• Proven System - in market since 2004 with over 4000 structures built throughout NZ and Australia.

About Environmental Product Declarations

EPD’s are a recipe for the environmental footprint of a product. It is not an endorsement, but provides a level playing field for the comparison of products. In addition EPD’s can make the process of reporting on products and projects through sustainability rating schemes such as the Infrastructure Sustainability Council’s IS Rating Scheme easier.

“An Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) is an independently verified and registered document that communicates transparent and comparable data and other relevant environmental information about the life-cycle environmental impact of a product.

Multiple datasets are included in an EPD: resource consumption of energy, water and renewable resources, and emissions to air, water and soil. This data is aggregated using multiple environmental impacts including contributions to climate change (carbon footprint), air, water and soil pollution and resource depletion.

Other relevant impacts and environmental information may also be included. This may include data on product performance, the company’s environmental management system or other environmental certifications.”

(EPD Australasia, 2023)

About Envirocon

Envirocon is a sustainability-driven precast concrete company that supplies easy to use, fast and flexible construction systems.

We work with NZ’s leading companies to close the loop on concrete waste for good.

We do this through our Interbloc and Stonebloc precast wall systems. At the core of the systems are proprietary block designs. The block designs look simple enough, but when you dive deeper they deliver a powerful combination of benefits.

(Interbloc pre-cast concrete blocks on the left, and Stonebloc retaining wall blocks on the right)

They start life with ultra low embodied carbon, and continue to reabsorb carbon over their life.

They reduce time, labour, and materials waste during installation.

They deliver unparalleled durability, increasing the life of the structure.

They can be non-destructively dismantled and reused at the end of life.

We call this approach the CarbonSmart - Low Carbon, Zero Waste sustainability system.