Of course, a comfortable indoor climate should never come at the expense of our outdoor climate. That is why Kingspan, as a specialist in insulation materials and market leader in the construction industry, takes its responsibility when it comes to circular construction. Wall cladding with a deposit? If it is up to Kingspan, a real option. Evert Kraaima, manager Facades & Technical Services at Kingspan, explains how Poelmann van den Broek advises them on the legal frameworks for a take-back guarantee.
"Kingspan wants and can make an important contribution to combating climate change and protecting nature," says Evert Kraaima. "We have ambitious goals in the areas of circularity, energy consumption, carbon reduction and water management. You can read it all back in our sustainability strategy 'Planet Passionate.' Also that we see climate change as the most important problem of our time."
Percentages give hope
A serious message for the building industry. And rightly so, because buildings take up 36% of global energy consumption and 39% of carbon production. At the same time, those percentages also give hope, because it means that every positive action has serious impact. So says Kingspan in its 2030 vision document "Planet Passionate.
Legal frameworks are important
The take-back guarantee advised by Marloes Beeren, lawyer at Poelmann van den Broek, is a small part of Kingspan's overall approach to circularity. But because of the new legal frameworks that must be drawn up, it is an essential part. Evert: "A building is actually a large warehouse of raw materials. That idea is now gaining support. Architects see circularity as an instrument to make a building distinctive. But it remains a challenge to realize the highest achievable innovations in that area within budget. This is exactly why the legal frameworks are so important to us."
Exclude risks to our balance sheet
Evert: "Marloes lets us think about questions such as 'Do we set requirements for the amount of material that may be returned?', 'From when and until when may be returned?' and 'What price will the buyer receive if the products are taken back?' In this way, we can eliminate any risks to our balance sheet in the future and determine what the options are. So it's an interplay between our innovation and finance departments and external advisors like Marloes and our accountant."
Changing the current system complicated
As a lawyer, Marloes is aware of the entrepreneurial opportunities and risks of the take-back guarantee. "That's exactly what makes these types of issues interesting," Marloes said. "In fact, you're making agreements that won't come into play for several years. By then the existing legal frameworks will be inadequate or perhaps also changed; in fact, the law is always behind in this respect. And you should not be guided in innovations only by existing legal frameworks. Not, at least, if that would kill an innovation early on."
Deposits on building parts will be the future
"Now, for example," Marloes continues, "parts that are firmly attached to the building are owned by the owner of that building. That's called natrekking, and it means that a smaller, stand-alone thing becomes part of a larger thing. Deposits on building parts are undisputedly going to be the future, but right now it takes a lot of money and energy to get that fixed. And banks typically only want to lend money for a complete whole. This meshing with all the parties involved makes changing the current system very complicated."
QuadCore facade cladding made from upcycled PET
As mentioned ... in addition to the take-back guarantee, which will probably be offered to the market in the second half of this year, Kingspan is active on many fronts to preserve viability on the planet. For example, the goal of running production entirely on green electricity has already been met. And the new product QuadCore delivers better insulation value with 12% less material, which not only saves material in production, but also saves a lot when it comes to packaging, transportation, sawing loss and waste. And by 2025, QuadCore will be made from upcycled PET. Evert: "We see it as our mission to challenge industry traditions. The most circular thing, of course, is not to build at all. But if you do, we provide the smartest solutions."
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