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Lancashire Times
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1:00 AM 22nd April 2024
business

“Slam The Door On Construction Waste This Earth Day,” Upcycling Champion Says

 
Joseph Holman
Joseph Holman
Doors and windows are needlessly being dumped into landfill but could easily be reused, the boss of an upcycling company has said

Green Doors CEO Joseph Holman founded his company with a set of French doors he found in a skip back in 2014.

This Earth Day, taking place on Monday April 22nd, Holman is urging the construction industry to stop accepting that all waste is destined for landfill and to reuse resources.

“There’s money to be made from reselling. Many builders and other trades people are missing a trick by throwing all waste into skips while there’s a growing upcycling market.

“If they take more care when removing old doors and windows they could end up making hundreds of pounds on top of their work at the site.

“It’s possible to do things that benefit both the wallet and the planet.”

Holman said the habits of the industry have to change. With the theme of this year’s Earth Day being ‘Planet vs. Plastics’, Holman said the material used to make many doors and windows should be put under the spotlight.

“The production of uPVC is a very toxic industrial process, therefore it is essential that they have an extended lifespan.

“A uPVC door will never biodegrade, once it’s in landfill that’s where it will stay. Let’s slam the door on this wasteful practice.

“More than 10 billion doors are produced every year across the world with some not even making it out of the factory due to manufacturing errors. But most windows and doors can enjoy at least a second life.”

Holman said he wants door manufacturers to stop using landfill and instead embrace the upcycling market.

"Some companies deliberately destroy doors rather than allowing us to rescue them,” he added.

Last year, Green Doors rescued over 3,000 items destined for landfill and currently has thousands of doors and windows for sale in its 50,000 square foot warehouse.