Holcim: The Importance of Circularity in Construction

Several construction professionals are now prepared to pay more for services and materials with genuine circular credentials, according to new research.

The study from Holcim UK highlights a growing demand for sustainability that is verifiable, urging industry leaders to support the implementation of mandatory third-party certification into circular procurement standards to avoid the risks of greenwashing.

Holcim UK – a company involved in sustainable building solutions – has a stated goal of achieving net zero by 2050 through decarbonisation and circularity.

Holcim UK's latest Circularity Survey gathered insights from 500 UK-based decision-makers including architects, building contractors and haulier merchants to explore the changing attitudes towards the circular economy.

The research was commissioned to help the government and the wider industry understand the barriers preventing the sector from fully adopting circular practices.

A change in procurement priorities

The findings from Holcim’s survey suggest that commitment to circularity is growing across the construction sector.

Procurement policies within local government, large businesses and housing associations are increasingly favouring suppliers that can demonstrate strong circular practices.

This indicates that suppliers able to prove circularity in their operations services and products could gain a competitive advantage.

Kaziwe Siame Kaulule, Managing Director Aggregates & Construction Demolition Materials at Holcim UK, says: “These findings show a clear shift in the construction industry: circular credentials are no longer a ‘nice to have’ – they are fast becoming a decisive factor in procurement decisions."

"Sustainable materials are moving from the margins to the mainstream.”

Embedding circularity into materials

While the desire for sustainable practice is present, leaders report facing major barriers to implementation.

To address this, Holcim UK developed its ECOCycle range as a practical application of circular principles.

This initiative embeds circularity at the manufacturing stage, turning waste into new building products.

Kaziwe says: “At Holcim UK, our ECOCycle range turns waste materials into new building products, embedding circularity at the point of manufacture.

"This means decision-makers can rest assured that the materials we provide, and they use, have circularity quite literally built in." 

To counter greenwashing and hold suppliers accountable, procurement processes require transparency, clear standards and verification.

Holcim’s research points to a need for local authority procurement to better align its policies with its stated environmental claims.

To achieve this, verification processes must be robust and impartial.

The report from Holcim recommends that government and industry bodies work together to establish mandatory verification and independent third-party certification within public and private procurement frameworks.

This step could increase the credibility of sustainability claims and accelerate the broader adoption of circular procurement.

“Individual products will not be enough," Kaziwe adds.

"We need to see government and industry introducing robust verification methods, third-party certification and clear standards to ensure circular credentials are evidence-based and without room for ambiguity.

"The introduction of such standards could provide the confidence and clarity the market needs to fully embrace circular construction, ensuring that sustainability pledges are supported by tangible evidence."