Why does our impact matter?

One of the first steps in working within an environmentally detrimental industry is acknowledging our impact and how we can move towards a greener future. As a technological company for the production and transportation of concrete, we would like to begin with a few simple facts that motivate us, as a conscious contributor to the concrete industry, to work towards solutions that will one day reduce our industry's carbon footprint.

The unfavorable ingredient in concrete, as many know, is cement. However, the final product also plays a disadvantageous role in the outcome of our surroundings. The Guardian (2019) expresses how the world’s second most used material has both benefits and adverse effects on the world we live in. One cannot put aside the fact that concrete shelters us from natural disasters and daily weather and continues to be one of the most durable materials. However, it cannot be ignored that cement production is responsible for 4-8% of the world’s Co2 emissions. Also, concrete absorbs almost a 10th of the world’s industrial water. So, what is our promise to future generations to make a positive impact?

How are we working towards a positive impact?

We pride ourselves on collecting data from our automation systems to lead towards a greener approach in concrete production. Concrete producers always have one thing in mind, to offer the best quality concrete in the most cost-efficient way. One way to save money and reduce one's environmental footprint is improving your ecological performance by recycling greywater. Here at MARCOTTE, we have implemented a measurement in our system to track data and determine the percentage of greywater allowed in each mixture to reduce the waste of freshwater. The advantages of recycling and reusing grey water are as follows:

Recurring savings
• Purchase of cement
• Wastewater treatment costs (personnel and chemicals)
• Cost of landfilling residual materials (residual sludge)

Improved environmental performance
• Reduction in water consumption
• Reduction in raw material consumption
• Reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions

Another critical step that we have taken with our data collection is understanding the energy required to mix and pour concrete. According to a study by the University of Cergy-Pontoise, optimizing mixing time could reduce energy consumption by up to 13% and average mixing time by about 16%. One way to optimize the mixing time (and therefore the time and energy required) is to follow the power curve.

Advantages
• Production/quality
• Homogeneous quality from one batch to the next (reduces the risk of rejection on site / return of concrete)
• Autonomous management of the mixer closing (as soon as the mixture is stabilized, closing to start the next batch)
• Recurring savings:
• Increase in production capacity (reduction in time/waste)
• Energy cost

Improved environmental performance
• Reduced energy consumption
• Reduced greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions

Our Policy

Sustainable development and responsible procurement:
Through its Local Purchasing Policy, Marcotte aims to respect the principle of responsible sourcing and aims to require its ecological footprint by reducing:
• The use of non-renewable raw materials.
• The use of toxic and persistent substances in the environment.
• The production of non-recyclable waste.
• The emission of greenhouse gases.
• Water consumption.
And by encouraging:
• The purchase of products made from recycled materials.
• The reuse of products.
• Reducing the need to purchase at the source.
• The purchase of biodegradable products
• The purchase of recyclable products
• Financial savings

Supply Chain Initiative

Our supply chain initiative consists of several important factors, which include:

• Act in accordance with the procurement function's business model by applying the common framework, and the frameworks that derive from it to the procurement operation they manage.
• Identify and plan their needs appropriately
• Actively collaborate with the Procurement Department in the qualitative and quantitative development of the framework portfolio for goods and services to make the best use of data and generate savings.
• Mandatory purchasing through contracts and framework agreements in accordance with Marcotte's rules and policies
• Reduce administrative costs resulting from multiple tenders
• Acquire low value goods and services using a credit card to reduce administrative costs
• Involve project management in the identification of major projects and work with them to evaluate the quality of goods and services.
• Financial savings

During the past three years, on average, 61% of our purchases to create our technology are sourced locally within a 50 km radius of our head office.