Cornerstone Building Brands has announced the expansion of its Ply Gem® 1500 Vinyl Window and Patio Door Collection, introducing coextruded black finishes for improved flexibility in sustainable building design. The collection maintains strong energy efficiency and durability, prioritising low carbon design and energy-efficient buildings while offering aesthetic versatility. Such product innovations reflect a broader industry push for green building materials and eco-friendly construction, aiming to advance environmental sustainability in construction practices worldwide.
Circular economy in construction remains a high priority, with Blackstone Stripout, a member of the Alliance for Sustainable Building Products, highlighting practical circular construction strategies through the reuse of materials and sustainable strip-out. By focusing on resource efficiency in construction and end-of-life reuse, Blackstone directly addresses embodied carbon in materials and helps reduce the carbon footprint of construction projects. Their efforts align with growing support for lifecycle assessment and whole life carbon assessment to cut embodied carbon and support a net zero whole life carbon future.
Municipal decarbonisation efforts are progressing, as seen in North Kesteven district council’s move to replace diesel with hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) for its refuse and recycling vehicle fleet. This operational carbon reduction step demonstrates a measurable approach to lowering greenhouse gas emissions and aligns with the growing demand for low carbon construction materials and carbon footprint reduction across the sector. Adoption of renewable fuel sources highlights the wider transition towards net zero carbon operations in civic infrastructure.
Recognition of sustainable building practices is increasing, as shown by Penn State Health’s recent 2025 IDEA Innovation Award for energy optimisation at its Milton S. Hershey Medical Centre. This achievement exemplifies the industry’s commitment to whole life carbon reduction, green infrastructure, and building lifecycle performance. Such initiatives reinforce the value of integrating building lifecycle cost and lifecycle thinking in construction to achieve net zero carbon buildings and operational efficiency.
The financial landscape is also shifting. The Willow Review proposes a 14-step roadmap to unlock a greener economy for nearly 5.5 million UK SMEs, targeting barriers to widespread adoption of sustainable construction and eco-design for buildings. Improved access to sustainable material specification and green building products could accelerate environmental impact reduction and stimulate innovation in suppliers and contractors around the world who are seeking to lower their life cycle cost and improve sustainability outcomes.
Calls for a just transition to clean energy are growing louder across construction supply chains. A coalition of MPs and trade union leaders in the UK is urging robust government planning to support oil and gas workers as the sector shifts towards carbon neutral construction and decarbonising the built environment. As global pressures for sustainable urban development intensify, detailed, well-funded roadmaps are essential for accelerating the uptake of net zero whole life carbon and embedding sustainable building practices on an international scale.
