InfraBuild’s Momentous First GECA Certification a Win for Australia’s Built Environment

InfraBuild has become the first organisation to have products certified by Good Environmental Choices Australia (GECA) under its Steel & Steel Products standard. 

 GECA today announced select reinforcing bar and reinforcing mesh products were independently certified as meeting the requirements of GECA’s Steel & Steel Products (SSPv1.0i-2019) lifecycle ecolabel standard. 

The certification covers InfraBuild’s reinforcing bar and reinforcing mesh products that are manufactured by InfraBuild in Australia to AS/NZS 4671 (including Trench Mesh and UTEMESH).  

GECA said InfraBuild had demonstrated leadership by independently assessing its products against 44 critical science-based environmental, health, social and quality impact criteria. For example, GECA’s world-class Steel & Steel Products standard addresses multiple environmental attributes such as:  

• toxicity
• air quality
• energy use
• recyclability
• hazardous substances
• water consumption
• use of sustainable materials and
• waste minimisation

 It also encompasses social impacts, including fair pay, equal opportunity, and a safe working environment for employees and people across the supply chain.  

 
“InfraBuild’s certification is a momentous occasion as they are the first organisation under our Steel & Steel Products standard. This is an incredible achievement, as the assessment looks at impacts across a product’s entire lifecycle, from the extraction of raw materials to the end of its life!” says Josh Begbie, CEO at GECA.  

 
Steel manufacturing is a significant contributor to national and global carbon emissions. In 2020 the total direct emissions from the sector represented between 7% and 9% of global carbon emissions. GECA’s ecolabel standard places clear restrictions on carbon emissions, helping the industry to reduce its impact. 

 
“Steel is a critical material for Australian buildings and infrastructure. It is also highly intensive in terms of impacts, including carbon. InfraBuild has taken a substantial step that has the potential to drive the entire sector toward best practice that will benefit people and planet. We congratulate them on their leadership,” says Begbie.  

In addition, InfraBuild’s GECA certification means that select reinforcing bar and reinforcing mesh products are recognised as Best Practice under the Green Building Council of Australia’s new Green Star Buildings ratings tool – Responsible Product Framework (v1.1). These certified products can contribute to a Responsible Product Value of 15, the highest level of recognition achievable for: 

• Responsible Structure
• Responsible Envelope
• Responsible Systems
• Responsible Finishes

“InfraBuild’s mission is to build futures through sustainable steel and we are incredibly excited to be leading the industry as the first to obtain GECA certification under their Steel & Steel Products standard,” says David Bell, InfraBuild’s Manager Sustainability and Insight.

The GECA certification means a select range of our reinforcing bar and mesh products, which are manufactured in Australia using our lower embodied carbon steelmaking techniques, are now able to support Green Star Buildings’ rated projects and contribute to meeting the ratings tool’s ‘Best Practice products’ criteria.

 GECA’s third-party assessment procedures and robust standards following internationally recognised ISO 14024 principles mean that GECA certification is trusted and rigorous – providing confidence to asset owners, designers, specifiers, contractors, sustainability professionals and procurement specialists.  

 GECA said the partnership with InfraBuild provided Australia’s building industry with an independent, reliable and credible way to source reinforcing bar and reinforcing mesh products for their Green Star projects.