Our Report
In 2008, the UK concrete industry committed to the Concrete Industry Sustainable Construction Strategy. This commitment was made by manufacturers and sector associations from the aggregate, cement, GGBS, fly ash, admixtures, ready-mixed and precast concrete sectors, with support from the industry body, MPA The Concrete Centre.
Annual performance reports have been published for 12 years and are testament to achieving a common framework of industry-wide reporting and an ambition of continuous improvement. Communicating and educating our colleagues and customers was also a key strategic objective.
The training, events and new guidance delivered are essential in enabling the design of a more sustainable built environment using concrete.
As the UK construction industry’s approach to sustainability develops, our industry strategy needs to stay ahead of supply chain requirements. In 2012, we were delighted to announce the launch of an updated Concrete Industry Sustainable Construction Strategy with targets to 2020 and beyond.
Report timeline
In March 2009 the industry published its first Concrete Industry Sustainability Performance Report and marked the event with a launch to key stakeholders.
In March 2010, the second report signified another industry milestone; the agreement to publish performance targets. With 12 targets published in this report and more in development, this report reflected our commitment to transparency and continual improvement.
In November 2010, the third report showed the progress towards the vision was being demonstrated by: exceeding government targets on responsible sourcing; exceeding UK average reduction of greenhouse gases; exceeding energy performance targets; as well as a stakeholder engagement survey being launched.
In October 2011, the fourth report presented the concrete industry's sustainability performance in 2010. The British Association of Reinforcement (BAR) signed up to the strategy and this report included performance data from this sector.
In November 2012, the fifth report, based on 2011 production data, demonstrated how far the industry had come in realising its vision. Many of the 2012 targets had been achieved already and in many cases exceeded. Not wanting to rest on its laurels, the industry then committed to further sustainability improvements by 2020 and beyond.
In October 2013, the sixth report presented the industry's performance from 2008 to 2012, a milestone year for the strategy as many of the targets for performance improvement were set to be achieved in 2012. The next stage of the strategy was also featured - our commitments to 2020.
In March 2015, the seventh report was launched as part of the Concrete and Masonry Pavilion at Ecobuild 2015. This event brought together industry and stakeholders and was part of a broader event that provided guidance on the use of concrete and masonry in a sustainable built environment.
In March 2016, the eighth report was launched at the Concrete and Masonry Pavilion at Ecobuild 2016, as part of an industry update provided by Andy Spencer, Chair of the Sustainable Concrete Forum and Nigel Jackson, Chief Executive of the Mineral Products Association.
In March 2017, the ninth report was launched alongside the 1st REAP Progress report. To celebrate the 10 year anniversary of the launch of the Sustainable Concrete Forum, a 10th report was issued, as a This is Concrete magazine, entitled 'Ten Years, Ten Insights' which covers the highlights and vast progress made by the concrete industry since 2008.
In March 2019 a summary report was issued to list the progress made in this the strategy's 11th year.
In March 2020 the twelfth report was published, this summary report provided a snapshot of sector performance based on data from 2018.
In March 2021 the thirteenth report was published, this summary report provided a snapshot of sector performance based on data from 2019.
In March 2023, the fourteenth report was published, based on 2020 data. Due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic this report was delayed. The performance report for 2021 will be published shortly by UK Concrete.
2020 saw a series of lockdowns as part of the UK’s response to the global COVID-19 pandemic. UK Government quickly realised the essential nature of construction and mineral products and the concrete supply chain was quick to restart. However, there was a considerable impact on staffing and production levels throughout 2020 due to COVID. This disruption has had an impact on the data supplied from the product sectors. The UK Concrete Sustainable Construction Group has made the decision to publish 2020 data, however it should be noted that 2020 data has the potential to be an anomaly in many cases. Many of the targets set as part of the strategy were based on a 2020 goal. Again, due to the disruption to the supply chain during 2020, no assessment of performance related to targets should be made based on the performance in 2020 alone.
Also available are:
Concrete Industry Guidance on Sustainability Performance Indicators, 2020
Concrete Industry Guidance to Support BRE Global BES 6001 Issue 3.1 Framework Standard for Responsible Sourcing, July 2017.