The built environment
Cement is the bond that literally holds today's infrastructure together, whether it is an individual home in Mexico, or a 5th runway at Heathrow. Concrete is the most widely used material on earth apart from water, with nearly three tons used annually for each man, woman and child.
It is easy to overlook the use of concrete in society. Concrete plays a vital part in our daily lives and in a functioning society. Its benefits to society are immense, being used to build our schools, hospitals, apartment blocks, bridges, tunnels, dams, sewerage systems, pavements, runways, roads and more. Many of these could not be built without concrete.
Twice as much concrete is used around the world than the total of all other building materials, including wood, steel, plastic and aluminium. None of these other materials can replace concrete in terms of effectiveness, price and performance for most purposes.
Concrete, with its strength, durability and excellent thermal mass, should be a key component in eco-buildings of today and the future. In May 2008, The Guardian in the United Kingdom featured the first zero-carbon house developed by a volume housebuilder, in which concrete plays a critical role in maintaining internal temperatures.