Waterproofing manufacturer sets international standard

ISO 14001

Icopal are believed to have become the first bituminous waterproofing membrane manufacturer in the UK to win ISO 14001 for its environmental management systems.

The company gained the international standard for its commitment to being environmentally conscious and identifying and acting on operations that interact with or affect the environment, such as the supply of raw materials, waste disposal, air emissions, use of energy and design of products.

Icopal's quality services team at its UK base and factory in Manchester developed systems to manage these aspects and minimise the company's impact on the environment as well as ensure all relevant environmental legislation is complied with an ongoing basis.

As part of this process, a number of environmental objectives were set and achieved, including a 10% reduction in CO_² emissions compared with 2007 values, an increase in the recycling of waste
materials of 80%, and a 35% reduction in the amount of material sent to landfill.

Icopal's operations director Andy Hampson said: "We believe we are the first bituminous waterproofing membrane manufacturer to gain this accreditation in the UK which is in line with the environmental ethic of the global Icopal Group.

"Throughout the implementation of the environmental management systems, staff awareness was increased through training and campaigns, with all actively embracing the principles of good environmental management."

Icopal‘s commitment to developing products and systems in tune with the environment is proven with its bitumen-based Tecnatorch system which uses 25% less gas to install due to patented groove profiling on the underside of the SBS system that results in a quicker and more even melting of the bitumen mass.

As well as bituminous products, Icopal also supplies green roof systems and the Greenpeace-approved Sure-Weld TPO waterproofing membrane which is a fully recyclable advanced single-ply membrane that is free of PVC and specially formulated for long-term exposure without the use of either polymeric or liquid plasticisers.