The importance of supply chain sustainability is paramount: we work with local suppliers and source sustainable materials where possible, cut waste wherever we can and support companies which make it their mission to find better ways to work too.
Proud to be working with local suppliers
Redrow is committed to obtaining goods and services in a sustainable and responsible manner, which means working closely with supply partners, ensuring their values match our own; and always encouraging them to better manage their environmental impact, and reduce waste, energy consumption and carbon emissions.
Our target is to make sure 90% of our products, services and labour are bought and acquired locally to our developments.
And the standard Redrow specification includes:
- Concrete tiles which require fewer raw materials and produce lower CO2 emissions in their manufacture
- Aircrete concrete blocks for which 80% of materials are recycled; and 99% of materials are from the UK
- Gypsum plasterboard using natural gypsum (extraction uses little energy and mines are restored to preserve natural site and biodiversity), synthetic or recovered gypsum from waste-recycling chain, and almost 100% of paper used is recycled
Providing new opportunities
We support local businesses - and communities - across the UK via our supply chain. We directly employ more than 2,000 people and, annually, we support around 13,200 jobs including those that are direct (our employees), indirect (our supply chain) and induced (jobs created as a result of direct/indirect employees’ spending money in the community).
We are partners with the Supply Chain Sustainability School, which allows us to further support our supply chain with embedding sustainability into their operations. The school offers information and training workshops on topics like waste and resource efficiency, which are attended by a variety of staff from all our divisions. Since we became partners with the school almost 5,000 free resources have been accessed by more than 300 Redrow suppliers, and 33% of top-tier suppliers are working with SCSS, which we want to see increased to 85%.
Packaging and waste reduction
Redrow’s supply chain embraces merchants, distributors, and manufacturers together with our valued subcontractors. Working closely with our supply chain partners, many for a number of years, has proved beneficial for all and enabled us to develop an appreciation of the key drivers for each business. Together, we use this knowledge to deliver operational efficiencies, identify product improvements and tackle wastage.
We launched our Reduce the Rubble initiative - an industry first - in 2020 to track waste produced during the construction of a standard Redrow Oxford house type across three sites, and see how it could be reduced during procurement, design and construction. The study identified 30 opportunities for improvement, and changes are already being made to our product to make cost-savings and reduce environmental impact.
More is being done within our supply chain. Redrow suppliers like Johnson Tiles (see below) have already reduced packaging. The company cut its use of plastics (shrink-wrap) from 100 tonnes to zero in 10 months.
Sustainable timber use
For the last 15 years Redrow has been promoting responsible forest management and ensuring the eradication of illegal timber products from our supply chain. Today, 99.7% of our timber is responsibly sourced and credibly certified - and the target is 100%.
Redrow was the first UK homebuilder to achieve the WWF's ‘Three Trees’ status - which we have since retained, and we’re among the top 40 companies in the country using Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified and other responsibly-sourced timber and paper products, which ensures there is no damage to the surrounding environment, or to native flora and fauna.
Caring for the environment is a shared responsibility
Redrow’s ethos for green governance extends to those we work with, ever-conscious of carefully selecting our suppliers to minimise impact on the environment.
Suppliers working with us to protect our planet include Johnson Tiles and Ibstock Bricks.
Johnson Tiles
Still operating from the Potteries’ heartland of Stoke-on-Trent where it began in 1901, Johnson Tiles is committed to responsible manufacture. It has developed 50 eco-friendly ranges and, over the last 20 years, found ‘better ways to operate’.
It has removed all single-use plastic packaging, uses 100% recycled packaging materials, and uses 20% recycled ceramic content.
Johnson Tiles re-uses and recycles water, repairs and recycles wooden pallets, saves paper through digital initiatives, and more.
Ibstock Brick
Already eco-aware, Ibstock Brick plans to create the world’s first Net Zero Carbon brick factory, Atlas, in the West Midlands.
It hopes to achieve its aims through a rapid reduction in carbon emissions from the production process via improved thermal efficiency, on-site renewable electricity generation and renewable energy procurement. This will cut the carbon intensity of bricks produced by 50% compared with the existing factory.
The remaining emitted greenhouse gases will be offset using high-quality reduction projects including carbon credits, removal of CO2 from the atmosphere through re-wilding and carbon capture and storage.
The move will also secure its future and provide long-term local employment opportunities.
Discover our guide to making your house an eco-friendly home.
