Recycled building materials are becoming increasingly popular in the Czech Republic, saving costs

Prague - Recycled materials are being used more and more in Czech construction projects. This saves builders costs in a time of rising building material prices by up to 30 percent. The quality of recycled materials is either the same or only slightly worse than traditional materials. This was agreed upon by representatives of construction companies and building material suppliers contacted by ČTK. According to them, recycled concrete, aggregates, and asphalt are the most commonly used.

According to the companies, the use of recycled materials will continue to grow in the future. However, due to building regulations, they will not replace traditional non-recycled structures in certain segments. According to the experts consulted, the technological development of recycled materials is relatively expensive. However, costs are reduced by almost zero expenditures for already used materials, which do not need to be mined or produced again.

The distance from construction sites to the treatment facilities also plays a significant role. Construction companies are therefore trying to recycle materials as close to the construction site as possible, thereby also saving money on logistics. "It is undoubtedly about savings, mainly due to the fact that the treatment by crushing and sorting occurs close to the construction site, which saves transportation and waste handling costs. Compared to newly purchased materials, savings range from 10 to 30 percent," said Bohuslav Slánský, head of technical development at Skanska.

In Czech operations, according to Tomáš Rosák, Executive Director for Eastern Europe at the construction materials manufacturer Saint-Gobain, more than 20 percent of input raw materials are replaced with recycled materials. "In 2022, this amounted to 340,000 tons of basic raw materials, which is for reference tens of thousands of trucks. The rising prices of raw materials favor recycling, making recycling technologies economically accessible and feasible," Rosák stated.

Recyclates are most commonly used in earthworks or as base layers for transport constructions. "We most often use recycled material for backfill, terrain adjustments, or for reinforcing the surface of the construction site," said Radim Mana, spokesperson for Metrostav. "The products made from recycled material that we use are not just classic inert construction materials, but also steel or insulation, for example. We use recycled material in approximately 10 to 15 percent of our constructions," he added.

Zdeněk Militký, director of the construction chemistry and dry construction division at Stavebninách DEK, stated that the quality of recycled construction material depends on the technological process and the quality of the input raw materials. According to him, the high-quality production of recycled building materials and the increased price of original materials are the reasons why renewable materials will be used increasingly in the future. However, non-renewable materials will not be completely phased out in the near future, he added.

"Recycling is not applicable to all types of constructions and all materials. For example, for demanding concrete constructions or stabilization layers for railway tracks, we will definitely use traditional raw materials," Slánský added.