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Plastic is winning the Eco race

Why the Detmold based construction products manufacturer SCHOMBURG prefers to use plastic bags rather than paper bags – and why this is a win for the environment.
• Plastic bags have a better environmental statement than other packaging
• The ability to be completely emptied makes the packaging an ecological winner
• Plastic bags are only one contingent of many sustainability topics at SCHOMBURG
Sustainability is a big topic. An ever increasing number of people want to be consciously environmentally responsible and industrial companies like the Detmold based system based construction products manufacturer SCHOMBURG can support them in this. Here it is not always about big gestures, sustainability lived through every day is often more important for our ecological balance. Naturally a company like SCHOMBURG respects large building sites such as the new construction of its laboratory and training building in Detmold with energy efficient and environmentally sound construction. But even more contribution can be achieved with such trivial things as plastic packaging.
A good number of SCHOMBURG products are filled out into plastic packaging. Mortars, waterproofing products, concrete additives - all these building materials are powders and therefore best filled into bags of different sizes. They are often hygroscopic and therefore draw in moisture quickly and must consequently be well sealed when packed. The bags should also protect against dust. Only sealed packaging can guarantee that the building material will arrive complete on site, without having left undesirable dust behind during filling, transportation or storage, which is then deposited into the environment. A further point is valid here. Building products must sometimes be stored in the open air – only watertight packaging guarantees that the contents are protected from rain and damp.
The trick, which makes these bags more environmentally friendly than their competition is in the detail. They are made completely from plastic and unlike other packaging, have no paper component. Even though paper has a more environmentally friendly image than plastic, this is unfortunately often a mistake. In general the production of paper bags uses almost twice as much energy as with the production of plastic packaging and additionally the air and water is exposed considerably more to the oxides of nitrogen, sulphur dioxide and other chemicals.
And: paper is not as naturally tear resistant as plastic. Where paper bags are reinforced with plastic, for example with an inner lining, then this worsens the environmental problem. There is an unnecessary outlay when recycling compared with homogenous packaging, which often leads to an unclean separation. And the user in confusion often wrongly recycles, with waste management companies also having hardships with correct classification.
SCHOMBURG goes a different way. The company has completely settled for plastic packaging, which is fundamentally easier for the large part to produce from recycled materials, is more stable and can be unambiguously recycled. And something else which helps with environmental exposure: the building product manufacturer ensures that the customer can fully empty their plastic packaging. Thus the contents can be efficiently used and the packaging can be recycled together with other plastics.
In general SCHOMBURG takes its environmental responsibility seriously. Through intelligent and efficient building technology in administration and production, each year several tonnes of CO2 are saved. Many products are marked with various environmental certificates such as for example the Emicode seal for clean indoor air. Since 2013 SCHOMBURG has been a member of the German Sustainable Building Council (DGNB). SCHOMBURG’s commitment is marked with the Ökoprofit seal, thus documenting exemplary environmental performance. Further information about sustainable actions in general and individual measures such as plastic sacks, which can be fully emptied, can be found on this home page under the heading “About us”.