The ability to design and build structures that last for 500 years or more instead of 50 will in the long run increase the concrete industry’s resource productivity by tenfold. Meanwhile substituting recycled materials for natural materials as described in this article it should be possible to substantially improve the resource productivity of the concrete industry immediately. Unquestionably the greatest challenge that the concrete industry faces during the 21st century is to achieve a sustainable pattern of growth. The task is formidable but the ideas and examples cited in this article show that it can be accomplished provided we make a paradigm shift from the culture of accelerating construction speeds to a culture of conservation of energy and material.
Technical Report Author: P. K. Mehta