Calculations by Marshalls have found that the UK’s housebuilding sector could dramatically reduce its carbon footprint by switching from clay facing bricks to concrete facing bricks, with the saving equivalent to taking over 100,000 diesel cars off the road for a year.
Following the publishing of a new Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) for its Concrete Facing Brick, Marshalls has uncovered that for every tonne of concrete facing bricks used instead of more traditional clay facing bricks, housebuilders could cut the total carbon lifetime footprint by almost half (49.1%) ** . This equates to 116.50 kilograms of CO 2 e per tonne of bricks.
When scaled to the total number of bricks used to construct homes during 2023 – approximately 1.1 billion † the carbon footprint savings are substantial. If all dwellings built in the UK during 2023 were constructed using concrete facing bricks, the UK could have saved 214,057 tonnes of CO 2 e. This is equivalent to removing 105,663 diesel cars off the road for a year – a reduction that could make a real difference in
the fight against climate change.
“Housebuilders are under immense pressure to reduce the carbon footprint of the construction process and the homes they build under net zero targets. But one of the challenges for the sector is that many meaningful improvements often require a massive overhaul of house designs that can affect aspects such as pace of build, useable square footage and saleability for example,” said Mike Edwards, Group Head of Sustainability for Marshalls. “Changing to concrete facing bricks, however, is an achievable swap that won’t affect speed or functionality but will make a dramatic difference to the carbon footprint.”
Marshalls’ concrete facing bricks can be used as a direct alternative to clay facing bricks, providing thermal performance, fire resistance with a Euroclass A1 reaction to fire classification, and frost protection to the equivalent of a F2/S2 rating for clay bricks. What’s more, all Marshalls’ concrete facing bricks are tested to BS771-3 :2011 A1: 2015 standard and one of the benefits of concrete is its ability to harden through its lifecycle.
Marshalls’ concrete facing bricks are also manufactured to be a consistent size aiding laying and its mix design minimises risk of efflorescence, shrinkage and moisture movement.
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