Holcim and Seqens build first recycled concrete building

Holcim and Seqens, a leading provider of social housing in France, are partnering to build Recygénie, the world’s first fully recycled concrete building.  

Drawing on its formulation expertise, Holcim’s Innovation Center has developed a first-of-its-kind concrete in which all components (cement, aggregates and water) are made of recycled materials. Built with this unique recycled concrete solution, Recygénie represents a breakthrough in circular construction. The building will be a 220-unit housing complex, including 70 social housing units, located outside Paris. Construction is currently underway, with completion expected in the 4Q24.

Edelio Bermejo, head of Global R&D at Holcim, said, “We need to shift gears: from a linear “take-make-waste” economy to a circular one, to improve living standards for all, while staying within our planet’s limits. The development of the world’s first fully recycled concrete in this social housing project marks a major milestone for us, as we want to make circular construction accessible to all, as the norm and not the exception. I am proud to put this innovation to work in the Recygénie project, making sustainable housing accessible to all.” 

The Recygénie project builds on the world’s first 100 per cent recycled clinker produced by Holcim in June 2022. This clinker was used to produce a fully recycled cement for use in the Recygénie concrete, saving approximately 3000t of natural resources that would have been extracted from quarries.

Additionally, the concrete is made exclusively with recycled aggregates from construction and demolition waste (CDW), recycled wastewater and rainwater. Overall, the concrete saved more than 6000t of natural resources. Starting in Europe, Holcim will replicate the development of fully recycled concrete across its markets, adapting the solution to local building norms and material availability.