360° solutions from Saint-Gobain
Complete response to a customer’s need, a Saint-Gobain solution is key to differentiate from competition. Whether for renovation or light construction, there’s no shortage of solutions. This Story presents a few of them in a 360° overview of a Group that’s shaping sustainable construction.
From design to renovation, from foundations to finishing, from local to global: for 360 years, Saint-Gobain has been meeting its customers’ complex needs. Today, faced with the challenges of climate, housing needs facing a growing demography and conservation of resources, the Group is deploying its expertise through 360 degrees, staying true to its purpose: “Making the World a Better Home”.
The quest for solutions, the common thread running through 360 years of expertise
From high-performance glazing to construction chemicals, from lightweight plasterboard to technical mortars, Saint-Gobain doesn’t just supply products, it designs solutions that meet the specific needs of a customer or market.
Beyond the traditional approach of best meeting a specific need with a dedicated product, the objective is to support clients dealing with complex issues by offering them sustainability and performance benefits, or a contribution tosustainable development, in order to speed up progress towards a more sustainable and low-carbon econ omy. The impacts of the solutions are assessed across the entire value chain and for the main stakeholders involved, right through to the end user.
Take building insulation. The core issue at Saint-Gobain is to provide an integrated solution that includes the product, its distribution, its installation and associated services. On the ground, this approach means providing personalized support to customers from the very first outlines of a project. This support goes far beyond traditional expectations, from customizing materials to optimizing logistics, and including digital building site management tools.
Renovation from ground to roof, Saint-Gobain is on every floor
Improving comfort, reducing energy consumption, and preserving the value of the building stock are the motivations behind the renovation projects of today. Take glazing for example, Saint-Gobain’s historic area of expertise. Windows are more than just openings to the outside world. They must become truly smart interfaces, letting the light in while ensuring thermal comfort. Saint-Gobain’s Eclaz® technology, for example, transforms this need into a complete solution. This glazing naturally regulates heat and light, providing optimum illumination and superior thermal performance. The result is visual and thermal comfort adapted to each season, with substantial energy savings on top.
Isover’s blowing wools – lightweight insulation applied using a blower – transform attic spaces into thermal blankets. For converted attics, the challenge is different: project developers want to retain as much living space as possible, while guaranteeing optimum insulation. Saint-Gobain offers a complete solution: Isover vapor barriers and glass wool rolls provide the thermal insulation, while Placo® plasterboard ensures a perfect, esthetically pleasing finish.
Sustainable renovation: unraveling fact from fictions
For walls, when the need is to improve energy performance without compromising on the finish or living space, outside insulation is the most appropriate solution. The ETICS* system, for example, combines insulation and plasterboard, reinforced with a fiberglass mesh to create a shield against the weather and UV rays. Innovations such as Glasroc® X multi-purpose plasterboard make the most of synergies with other solutions, such as Isover insulation, Weber mortars and ADFORS coated glass mat.
The Group also adapts its solutions to local needs, such as the fiber-cement façade solutions developed by Brasilit in Brazil and Prima in Malaysia. For owners wishing to preserve the character of their façades, indoor insulation, for example with Lanaé – a new generation of French eco-designed glass wool – combined with Placo® soundproofing panels, has become the solution of choice.
Circularity: Why can't we recycle buildings as well?
Light construction: a global and sustainable approach
Faced with the challenges of climate change and dwindling natural resources, light construction is emerging as a forward-looking solution. It meets increasingly complex needs, combining technical performance with comfort and durability.
This construction method has proved its worth all over the world. In the United States and Canada, it already accounts for 90% of the market, and 75% in Sweden. In the UK, Germany and the Netherlands, the market share is 50%. Its progress is explained by the tangible benefits it offers: carbon emissions from the production of materials are reduced by up to half, and use of raw materials is optimized.
This last point is crucial: light construction uses half as much material as conventional construction. This is achieved by favoring solutions such as plasterboard, or timber or metal frames, which are lighter than conventional solid materials. Their light weight also leads to productivity gains on building sites. With components that are easier to handle and install, construction time is reduced by up to 70%. A considerable advantage at a time when speed of construction is becoming a major issue in the sector.
Here again, each project has its own needs and constraints, which Saint-Gobain meets with integrated solutions developed within the Group.
Take schools, for example, with their specific and complex needs: creating a learning environment that helps students to concentrate, meeting the budgetary constraints of local authorities, and adapting rapidly to demographic and educational changes, while complying with regulatory standards and deadlines that are often tight.
The Group’s global approach and the synergies between its different brands make it possible to satisfy each of these needs. This can be achieved through light construction, where use of off-site construction techniques can considerably speed up the process. For example, the Façade F4 system developed by Isover and Placo® saves 6 to 12 weeks on the building site. Its high thermal and acoustic performance is also appreciated, creating a comfortable learning environment in all weathers while enabling local authorities to save on their energy bills.
For office buildings, another reality is that well-being at work has become a strategic issue. Companies are looking for premises that maintain employee productivity, creativity and comfort, while meeting increasingly strict environmental standards.
Here again, Saint-Gobain offers global solutions that transform workspaces while underlining its commitment to more sustainable construction. The Placo® Infinaé 98/62 partition is a good example. The result of a collaboration between Isover and Placo®, this unique solution, entirely recyclable and made from recycled materials, offers outstanding acoustic qualities, ideal for promoting well-being at work and concentration. With the width of two standard panels, it also saves installation time and halves the number of uprights required. Placo’s Gyptone® Activ’Air® ceilings are not only esthetically pleasing, they also improve indoor air quality and acoustic comfort.
Sustainable construction: what does it actually mean?
Saint-Gobain, with its 360 years of experience, doesn’t just sit back and watch the world change: the Group is taking action to make an entire sector sustainable. The proof is there for all to see. With more than 2,600 Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs), Saint-Gobain solutions transparently display their environmental impact and demonstrate their performance and comfort, to meet the needs and expectations of its many customers in construction and industry.
*External Thermal Insulation Composite System