This year’ s unprecedented volatility in the global energy market has brought energy efficiency into sharp focus for many homeowners. Rarely have we felt, as consumers, more exposed to the risk of hefty gas and electricity price rises.

No surprise then that measures which help reduce heat loss are more attractive than ever, particularly amongst homeowners who are embarking on extending their homes or refurbishing. Upping the spec of a product to one that

offers more insulation increasingly makes a lot of sense.

But while improving the thermal performance of windows, doors and the building envelope may have become the number one priority for many homeowners, it is actually only one part of the bigger sustainability challenge for the built environment. The way products are made is also under increased scrutiny, along with a product’ s lifespan and how much maintenance it will need during its lifetime, as well as what happens

to them when they are eventually replaced or the building is demolished.

Thinking whole life cycle – AKA the circular economy

When we started investigating the recycling of window glass, the main driver for us was to reduce our landfill waste disposal costs. But when we considered its potential beyond simply dealing with our offcuts, we knew it could trigger something far more revolutionary due to the high

value of crushed glass( cullet) as a raw material for making new building glass.

And so our post-consumer IGU recycling initiative was born, paving the way for others in the industry to implement similar schemes. The initiative developed in conjunction with Saint-Gobain Glass involved the development and installation of a machine capable of crushing waste glass from our customers – the post-consumer IGUs they remove as part of window and door replacement projects. This also enabled us to generate revenue from the cullet and use that money to fund good causes dedicated to environmental and social improvements in the local community.

To date, we have generated nearly 3,000 tonnes of cullet, saving CO2 emissions to the tune of 2,100 kg and prevented the extraction of more than 4,500 tonnes of sand – the key raw material for glass. That has generated enough funds to provide 406

grants for charities, organisations and individuals who are doing great things improving people’ s lives and the sustainability of the areas in which we live.

Our glass recovery and recycling initiative has also spurred us into action in other areas of our business to reduce waste with a focus on re-use. For example, we collect all the empty steel drums used by our sealant supplier so they can be sent to a specialist company for reconditioning. And the high quality wooden boxes in which Pellini S. p. A. supplies our integral blind orders are donated to local schools and charities for use as a raw material for all kinds of projects.

Why does this matter from a business perspective? In short, it is the cornerstone of our sustainability strategy. Our customers know they can depend on us to be a supply chain partner committed to reducing resource use and waste, cutting carbon emissions in the process and giving back to the community – all part