WRAP launches updated online guide to aggregates

AggRegain, the only website dedicated to the sustainable use of aggregate resources has been re-launched today with the addition of seven major new modules designed to address the needs of the entire supply chain.


Developed by WRAP (the Waste & Resources Action Programme), with the help of more than 20 leading industry organisations, www.aggregain.org.uk provides user-friendly access to a wealth of new site content. The new modules, complete with interactive tools, cover the following key areas: planning, recycling infrastructure, quality, waste management regulations, demolition, procurement and sustainability.

“AggRegain now provides one place, where producers, specifiers, buyers and users of recycled and secondary aggregates (RSA) can find everything they need to know,” says Phil Wilson, aggregates Project Manager at WRAP.

“Since its initial launch in 2003, AggRegain has played a valuable role in helping to promote a wider use for RSA and over this time we have listened to feedback from the aggregates supply chain on the need for further information. The new modules are a response to this and provide an in-depth and reliable source of knowledge and facilitation tools which will be of interest and practical use to the industry.”

AggRegain will help specifiers and buyers of RSA identify material that meets performance specifications and their sustainability objectives, whilst also saving them money. For example, the procurement module provides guidance and model clauses for the specification of RSA, while sustainability is an interactive module identifying the role of RSA in sustainable construction practices and indexing tools.

The data on the website includes lists of appropriate equipment, with details of manufacturers, for organisations investing in aggregates recycling plants.

Guidance is also readily accessible on quality standards and acceptance criteria for the use of recycled material over a wide range of applications

The modules covering planning, recycling infrastructure, quality and Waste Management Regulations are all designed to provide essential information for producers of RSA.

AggRegain can help producers set up a new reprocessing facility, achieve a higher value for their products, ensure they are complying with the right regulations and that their products meet performance specifications.

“We’re particularly proud of the interactive tool on the recycling infrastructure module which identifies the most suitable equipment and site layouts for a facility reprocessing the materials specified by the user,” says Mr Wilson. “The demolition module provides interactive building mock-ups to help identify the potential for material recovery from demolition sites, and its subsequent re-use in new builds.

“All of the new modules are designed to equip the supply chain with the tools necessary to make the most informed production and procurement decisions. The new improved AggRegain provides the complete online guide to sustainable aggregates,” he adds.

WRAP has set a target for its Aggregates Programme to increase the production capacity for recycled and secondary aggregates by up to three million tonnes a year by March 2006. Recycled aggregates can be produced by reprocessing materials such as concrete, brick, asphalt, and unbound sub-bases previously used in construction.

WRAP also anticipates that an estimated requirement for an extra 20 million tonnes per annum of aggregates by 2012 will be met by recycled materials.

Secondary aggregates are typically by-products of other industrial processes not previously used in construction, such as china clay waste, foundry sand, glass, tyres, and plastic.

WRAP has also published the Quality Protocol for the production of aggregates from inert waste to boost market confidence in the status of recycled aggregates.

The WRAP Aggregates Programme in England has been funded since 2002 by DEFRA through the Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund. The Aggregates Levy was set up by the Government to reduce impact on the environment from the extraction of aggregates such as crushed rock, sand and gravel used in construction. The WRAP work, which is being funded for a further three years from 2004, has the aim of reducing demand for primary aggregates by encouraging greater use of recycled and secondary aggregates

In March 2003, The Scottish Executive commissioned WRAP to implement a £1 million Aggregates Programme for Scotland, which was extended in 2004 with the approval of a further £1.4 million from the Sustainable Action Fund and £1,177,573 from the Strategic Waste Fund for a second phase.

Action inspires action. Stay ahead of the curve with sustainability and energy newsletters from edie

Subscribe