European Alliance Promotes Metals Use in Buildings

A newly formed European metals alliance, called Metals for Buildings, has been launched to promote the recyclability and sustainability of metals that are used in buildings.

Metals for Buildings says it represents European companies involved in primary metal production, downstream manufacturing and recycled metal production.

“Today's virgin metals are the recycled metals of tomorrow.” Gordon Moffat, EUROFER director general, says. “Metals provide society with a material that is 100 percent recyclable without loss of properties, and as a result, they help minimize the impact on the earth's resources.”

Metal scrap collection and recycling from the demolition or renovation of buildings is already a well-established business activity thanks to the high intrinsic financial value of metal scrap. A long lifetime, a high secondary value, efficient recovery, low recycling costs and a perpetual cycle of re-use make metals sustainable materials of the future, according to Metals for Buildings.

“Current EU initiatives, standards and criteria mostly refer to the recycled content of materials, a very common but insufficient indicator of resource saving,” adds Patrick de Schrynmakers, the European Aluminium Association secretary general. "Some products may have a high recycled content, but may not be recyclable a second time because of unacceptable loss of properties. Metals, in contrast, are recyclable again and again without loss of properties.”

Metals for Buildings is calling on EU legislators to address the unique attributes of metal building products and the inherent value for future generations, by including end-of-life recycling in all studies. David Wilson, secretary of the European Lead Sheet Association (ELSIA), says, “Sustainability regulations should not be just about where a material comes from; they must also include consideration of where a material goes to after use. EU legislators should not ignore the fact that metals have very high rates of recycling. In the case of lead sheet for building, 100 percent comes from recycled material and over 95 percent goes back into the recycling loop – you can’t get much more sustainable than that.”

Members of the alliance include: Euro Inox, Eurofer, Eurometaux, the European Aluminium Association, European Coil Coating Association, the European Copper Institute, the International Lead Association, the International Zinc Associationand theNickel Institute.