Sustainable Construction

Constructing differently is a constant challenge for Lafarge. For several years, the Group has been incorporating into its activities sensitive questions of preserving resources, rehabiliting quarries, limiting pollution and reducing worksite inconvenience and disturbance, and think about its contribution on completed buildings performances.

Lafarge now devotes around 50% of its R&D investments to sustainable construction. Its Research center is the 1st laboratory in the world for building materials and works on:

• improving existing products,
• developing new products which are even more effective and environmentally friendly.

 
But sustainable construction responds to major economic, social and environmental challenges which go far beyond the Lafarge Group's field of activities:

• throughout their lifecycle, buildings are responsible for 40% of the CO2 emissions and waste in developed countries,
• the building sector represents 10% of global GDP (Gross Domestic Product) and employs more than 100 million people around the world.

With Universities and Research Centers

That is why the Lafarge is multiplying its partnerships and working with numerous organizations to drive sustainable construction forward: universities, research centers, architects, international bodies, etc.

Scientific progress is promoted by sharing and discussion. Materials engineering is no exception. This is why Lafarge is working with the leading research centers in the world as well as the most prestigious international schools, institutions and universities.

The aim is share knowledge and expertise, maintain a lead in innovation and the quality of materials and advance sustainable construction. Particular examples include:

• MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) in the United States: Lafarge is exploring new and very cutting-edge experimental methods to observe the behavior of materials on a nanometric scale.
• Princeton University in the United States: Lafarge is modeling microstructure in order to design very low carbon cements and concretes which do not crack.

Lafarge also regularly participates in numerous international conferences on the theme of sustainable construction materials.