Saint-Gobain North America, through its building products subsidiary CertainTeed Roofing, acquired the rights to technology from recycling partner Asphaltica that will allow the company to recycle asphalt shingle waste, furthering the company’s commitment to creating a circular economy in its production of roofing shingles.
“By taking an innovative approach and embracing new technologies, Saint-Gobain and CertainTeed Roofing are making strides to maximize our positive impact while minimizing our environmental footprint,” Carmen Bodden, vice president of CertainTeed Roofing, said in a prepared statement. “CertainTeed takes our sustainability commitments seriously. The Asphaltica technology is proven and will help us achieve our goal of keeping shingle manufacturing waste across our network out of landfills.”
According to Saint-Gobain, the proprietary technology from Asphaltica will allow the company to pelletize both post-industrial and post-consumer shingle waste. The process creates pellets out of ground shingles that blend in hot mix asphalt and are an ideal component in an asphalt paving mix, according to Saint-Gobain. The pellets are highly water resistant and can be used in variable climate conditions, Saint-Gobain says. Asphaltica principals Bill Dempsey, PI, and Bill Bailey, PhD, will support landfill diversion efforts with CertainTeed.
“It was important to me personally to partner with an organization that has the global vision and resources to do big things, and that is why I am so proud to partner with Saint-Gobain and CertainTeed,” Bill Bailey, CEO of Asphaltica, said. “Their commitment to sustainability is unmatched and I look forward to working with their roofing teams as they continue their work to be leaders in light and sustainable construction.”
The initiative comes as Saint-Gobain continues to implement its global Grow and Impact strategy, which includes reducing waste and increasing the circularity of raw materials in its production process. The company has a goal of achieving a net zero carbon footprint by 2050. Saint-Gobain says the technology from Asphaltica will help the company contribute to the Asphalt Roofing Manufacturing Association’s (ARMA) goal to reduce landfill disposal of asphalt-based roofing materials to 50% by 2035 and to approach 0% by 2050.
Saint-Gobain said the partnership follows several recent actions taken by the company to solidify its commitment towards sustainability, including the announcement of a circular economy program in California.
