From waste streams to artwork: Renewi at Dutch Design Week

From 17 to 25 October, Sandbag Castle – The Future of Concrete is Now, an artwork by artist Yvonne Mak, will be on display during Dutch Design Week in Eindhoven. The work brings together various innovations aimed at making concrete more sustainable. It also incorporates concrete made with recycled construction materials from Renewi.

From waste streams to construction materials

Renewi’s construction materials originate from various recycling processes. Through the thermal recycling of tar-containing asphalt granulate and soil, circular construction materials from the FORZ® range are produced. In addition, Hydro-Mechanical Classification Technology is used to process old concrete rubble into high-quality concrete sand and concrete aggregate. All of these materials can be used in the production of concrete.

Artwork raises a relevant question

On a platform in the water stands a castle made from hundreds of concrete sandbags. With this work, artist Yvonne Mak refers to the need for protection against rising water levels and extreme weather. At the same time, the artwork highlights a dilemma: we need concrete for housing, infrastructure and flood defences, but its production is associated with significant CO₂ emissions. In this way, concrete contributes to the climate change we need it to help protect us against.

With Sandbag Castle, Mak therefore poses the question: what materials will we use to build the future?

The concrete of the future already exists

Alongside Renewi’s circular construction materials, the artwork incorporates other materials, techniques and innovations designed to reduce the environmental impact of concrete. While their approaches differ, they share the same conviction: the solutions already exist. The challenge now is to apply them on a larger scale.

Sandbag Castle – The Future of Concrete is Now can be visited during Dutch Design Week from 17 to 25 October at the Van Abbemuseum in Eindhoven.