Cement from recycled concrete offered in Singapore

Cement supplier offers new type of concrete for use in car parks
Channel NewsAsia 14 Mar 08;

One source of recycled materials is the National Stadium that will make way for the new Singapore Sports Hub. The complex will be built by a consortium, led by construction firm Dragages Singapore.

SINGAPORE : A local cement supplier is offering a new type of concrete for use in car parks.

The material works like a sieve, allowing rain water to drain away. This is now possible with a new local invention called Permecrete.

If all goes well, it could be used at car parks at the new Marina Bay Sands integrated resort. Its creator, Holcim, hopes to cement the deal within three months.

When used in a car park, Permecrete will help to keep the area dry and clean, with no puddles on the ground on a rainy day.

Holcim has submitted its proposal to Marina Bay Sands for consideration. It also plans to sell the idea to the Housing and Development Board (HDB) and property developers.

Holcim said the concept of Permecrete is a sustainable way of development, especially when sand is in short supply.

Dr Sujit Ghosh, Vice President, Operations, Holcim, said: "It's the first time in Singapore that this kind of Permecrete or sand-less concrete is being developed and being considered for car parks. The cost is controlled significantly by materials, so one of the material components which is sand, is out, so it's not going to cost more than normal concrete definitely."

No definite details can be released now because the deal has not been finalised. There will be more research done to improve the product, including the greater use of recycled materials.

One source of recycled materials is the National Stadium that will make way for the new Singapore Sports Hub. The complex will be built by a consortium, led by construction firm Dragages Singapore.

Dr Ghosh said: "We've initiated discussion with them, to see how we not only act as a concrete supplier, but also help in using back as much of the recycled materials which will be available from the demolition. So they have shown initial interest in this."

The Singapore Sports Council said plans to recycle the demolition waste have not been confirmed. The National Stadium will not be torn down until after the World Cup qualifiers in June.

Industry players said some amount of "legislation and incentivisation" will be necessary to encourage greater recycling of construction waste.

Such efforts are particularly active in Europe. For instance, in some land scarce Scandinavian countries, contractors will have to pay a dumping fee when they discard waste materials.

Currently, the amount of recycled demolition debris in the market totals over a million tons. Holcim said they could be used for non-structural applications and reduce the amount of raw materials to be imported.

Responding to Channel NewsAsia, the HDB said contractors for its various upgrading projects sell construction waste materials to recycling companies. - CNA/ch