Engineering sustainable outcomes
Phillip Handley of Walraven discusses how sustainability can be considered when selecting M&E fixings and modular support systems, offering practical guidance for specifiers, contractors and designers.
For all the noise around and green building standards, our industry still has a habit of focusing on the obvious. We scrutinise boilers, pumps, chillers, insulation and renewables – rightly so – but the quieter contributors to a project’s embodied carbon footprint often slip under the radar.
Fixings, anchors, brackets and modular support systems may not carry the glamour of high-profile technologies, but they are quite literally what holds modern building services together. And if we continue to select these systems on habit alone, we miss one of the simplest and most achievable opportunities to reduce embodied carbon.
Product selection: where sustainability starts
Product choice is often framed by structural or performance criteria, but it is equally a sustainability decision. Every nut, bolt and bracket carries a carbon footprint shaped by its raw materials, manufacturing process, transport and lifespan.
Choosing to work with manufacturers who practice sustainable sourcing, and who can provide Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs), provides transparency around environmental impact and allows contractors to compare products on something other than cost alone.
Equally important is the discipline of avoiding overspecification. Across countless projects, oversized or unnecessarily heavy components are selected ‘just to be safe’ or because ‘this is what we’ve always used’.
This mindset may feel sensible, but it drives up material consumption, cost and embodied carbon with no improvement in performance. Sustainable engineering requires confidence in the right specification, not the biggest one.
Modularity: a practical path to circularity
If the industry is serious about closing material loops, modularity must play a central role. Unlike welded or bespoke supports, modular systems are designed with reconfiguration in mind. They can be dismantled without destruction, moved to another location, or reused on a future project – a concept once considered niche but increasingly aligned with clients’ sustainability targets.
Modular design also offers adaptability, which is becoming indispensable. Buildings change use more frequently than ever, and M&E installations are rarely static. A system built with flexibility in mind allows contractors to accommodate layout changes or equipment upgrades without resorting to ripping out and starting again.
And because modular components are pre-engineered and cut to length, they dramatically reduce site waste, noise and installation time – a sustainability benefit that also happens to improve project efficiency.
Looking beyond the product: sustainable supply chains
Sustainability doesn’t begin and end with the item delivered to site. It stretches across the entire supply chain.
Local manufacturing reduces transportation emissions and supports regional jobs. Suppliers operating under standards such as ISO 14001 demonstrate a measurable commitment to environmental management.
Lean manufacturing processes reduce offcuts, minimise energy consumption and ensure that products arrive on site with a lighter footprint.
Choosing a sustainable supplier is not simply a procurement decision; it’s an extension of the project’s environmental strategy. And as more contractors take Scope 3 emissions reporting seriously, the importance of selecting responsible manufacturing partners will only grow.
Installation matters more than you think
Even components with low embodied carbon can contribute to a high-impact installation if they require intensive labour or high-power tools.
Systems designed for quick, simple installation save power, reduce reliance on hot works, improve site safety and cut down on the time operatives spend handling heavy equipment. Given the amount of fixings used on large construction sites, there can be a meaningful cumulative benefit.
Lifecycle thinking: the real sustainability test
Truly sustainable selection looks beyond the install date. Corrosionresistant materials and longlife coatings reduce the frequency of replacements, an often ignored contributor to wholelife carbon. Standardised, widely available components ensure compatibility with future systems, simplifying maintenance and avoiding unnecessary replacement of serviceable parts.
Perhaps most crucially, systems designed for deconstruction allow buildings to evolve without producing excessive waste. The ability to remove a support frame intact, rather than cutting it apart, unlocks reuse opportunities and supports a genuinely circular approach.
The invisible opportunity hiding in plain sight
In the pursuit of Net Zero, fixings and supports may seem like small players. But in terms of quantity, lifecycle impact and potential for improvement, they are one of the most accessible sustainability wins available to our industry.
By taking a more thoughtful approach to product selection, modularity, supply chain ethics, installation methods and lifecycle performance, specifiers and contractors can deliver measurable carbon reductions without compromising safety or functionality.
