In the closing ceremony of the VI National Congress of Aggregates, in Spain, the delivery ceremony of the XI Federation of Aggregates Awards for Sustainable Development in Quarries and Gravel Pits 2022 was held.
Tell us a little about these awards and how they came about.
We have been awarded the first two prizes in sustainable development in the categories of Innovation and Climate Change. These prizes are awarded by the Federation of Aggregates of Spain and each of the nominations are studied by a scientific committee made up of experts within the sector. For the Innovation category, we presented an innovative project that we developed together with Saitec, Ferrovial and Cementos Lemona, where we provided the technology and materials necessary to build a full-scale prototype for a new floating platform, where a windmill will be installed. This windmill, with a capacity of 2 MW will be installed in the sea and fixed to the seabed, which reaches depths up to 85m. Our lightweight concrete technology allowed for optimizing the dimensioning, reducing its geometry and obtaining a very light structure, with reduced CO2 emissions in its manufacture.
In the Climate Change category, we presented the benefits that Arlita® (Leca®) offered in different green and sustainable energy production technologies, such as Offshore Wind Power and the production within thermosolar plants. Both LECA and its parent company, Saint-Gobain are consistently and culturally moving forward with sustainability initiatives - offering sustainable materials that allow for the development of society and in a way that is more respectful to our planets resources – creating a road map for us to move towards our commitment of climate neutrality in 2050.
What do you think was decisive in the decision?
Undoubtedly, the performance that light aggregates (LWA) provide in comparison to conventional aggregates, offering a greater advantage from many sustainable viewpoints and especially when high performance is required in terms of density, resistance, insulation capacity, chemical stability, etc. Understanding our material well and being able to identify tangible value allows us to provide greater value added significance in projects that require superior performance when compared to alternative conventional aggregates. So being able to show our value and characteristics to the experts was key for us to win the awards in these two categories. And this is so important for LECA and our parent company Saint-Gobain, where we are striving for innovation and delivering in our commitment towards tackling climate change.
What is the importance of these awards for the positioning of the brand and for the market?
Making our products known and identifying the advantages it can bring to different technologies will differentiate us from other expanded clay manufacturers. The commitment of Leca and Saint-Gobain to offer high-performance products, together with a thorough knowledge of the possibilities our material can bring to different markets (civil engineering, energy, water treatment, etc...) allows us stand out from all our competition. We have an R&D department made up of industry experts who, together with direct market feedback, allow us to anticipate the needs of the market and in turn allows us to develop and refine our innovative products - thus providing an effective response to the demand for more technologically advanced materials.
