What is a material passport?

23 September 2022

We have seen an increasing number of developers and client discussing material passports so what on earth are they?

The concept of material passports was pioneered several years ago by RAU Architects, headed by Dutch architect Thomas Rau.

A material passport within construction is quite simply a digital document detailing all material information on a particular product. The aim of a building passport is to assist with the transition to truly circular construction. If executed correctly a building could have every element holding a material passport enabling anyone to view the value, potential for reuse and options for recycling of everything from ducting to the doors.

Whilst our European counterparts are ahead of the UK in terms of adoption of material passports their successes illustrate a clear case for both the sustainability of future buildings and the financial benefits to asset owners.

With any change and development in construction circularity there is the expectation that this will bring about a change in mindset of manufacturers. At RMF we hope that material passports will encourage manufacturers to produce better construction products and be more transparent with their data.

At RMF we are confident that we are well placed for material passport adoption especially with our RMF Eco Range. Given that we have already been through the rigorous and independently audited process of achieving and Environmental Product Declaration (EPD).

We look forward to being part of the positive shift to more circularity within construction and welcome any queries about the reuse of raised floor and how we can support existing project circularity and sustainability.

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