Responsible sourcing & Reuse - the RMF way

28 May 2021

The past year has been one to remember in the UK for a variety of reasons from a global pandemic to Brexit, we have faced uncertainty and unprecedented times. However with challenges comes opportunity and we believe that the time has come to review how we work and to be more resourceful. So how does this relate to construction? The price of building materials (according to the Monthly Statistics of Building Materials and Components) has increased by 7.8% in the past year. One of the key elements of raised access flooring is galvanised steel, the cost of which has increased since summer in following increments; July +£30; August +£30; Nov +£40, Dec +£80; Jan +£50 with further increases expected during the year.

So what opportunities are there to be had? Firstly, now is the time that the answer is a resounding ‘yes’ to reuse. Reuse of the materials we have is a perfect solution to material cost increases and to reduction in supply. By reusing materials there is also the added and overwhelming benefit of it being a much more sustainable solution, reuse helps us to work towards achieving a reduction in the detrimental impact construction has on the environment.

According to the waste hierarchy the most preferable options around waste are ‘reduce, reuse and recycle’ we can reduce waste not by manufacturing yet more products but by reusing those we have and then safely recycle or repurposing them.

Whilst reuse has it’s clear benefits in terms of sustainability it isn’t always the perfect solution in some scenarios and can have it’s own limitations subject to original manufacture quality. Using the example of raised flooring, over the years many manufacturers have come and gone from the industry leaving only a small number of UK based manufacturers. At RMF we have chosen to partner with an independent manufacturer for the supply of our new raised floor panels and through our rigorous background checks we have a supplier that takes sustainable and ethical production as seriously as we do.

As a business we take great pride in our ability to offer both new and a reused product to suit our client and contractors needs, budgets and criteria. We can also offer hybrid solutions on installation and have completed a number of projects using both a new and reused system tailored to the project specific criteria.

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