Ecophon's recycling service wins Circular Initiative of the Year
Press release 2022-12-15
SoundCircularity, Ecophon's recycling service for the construction industry, was named Circular Initiative of the Year at the Recycling Gala. The prize was awarded at Berns in Stockholm on November 24, 2022, and goes to innovations, business models or techniques that stimulate circular flows of materials and resources.
The gala was organized by the newspaper Recycling, with the Återvinningsindustrierna (Recycling Industries) and Avfall Sverige (Waste Sweden) as partners. The event was opened by the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency's director general Björn Risinger.
The jury's justification was: "The circular service SoundCircularity means that leftover mineral wool-based material such as wall absorbers and suspended ceilings from construction, installation and demolition projects can be recycled in new buildings instead of ending up in landfill."
“We are extremely proud and happy to be given the circular initiative of the year award. Up to a third of Sweden's waste comes from the construction and property sector. SoundCircularity is an example of how we want to take responsibility by facilitating the recycling of acoustic panels in construction projects”, says Erika Edlund, Sustainability Specialist at Ecophon Sweden.
Karina Wisniewska, Supply Chain and Recycling Service Specialist, Erika Edlund, Sustainability Specialist and Marie Clint, Marketing Manager at the prize ceremony.
Photographer: Mikael Gustavsen
Ecophon hopes that the award will accelerate and inspire the development of more circular solutions and reduced climate impact in the construction industry. The company has operations in 20 countries and has also launched SoundCircularity in France and Finland. The goal is to launch the recycling service in all key European markets by 2025.
“It is gratifying to see the great interest towards a more circular construction industry, and it feels hopeful to see all the commitment. We all need to work together to change standards and expectations, both in our industry and others”, says Marie Clint, Marketing Manager at Ecophon Sweden.
In 2020, the recycling rate for construction and demolition waste was 53%, according to the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency. One of Sweden's milestones within the environmental goals is that material recycling and preparation for reuse of non-hazardous construction and demolition waste must amount to at least 70% by weight by 2025.