Add as a preferred source on Google

Denver School District Recycles Old Ceilings

  • 02/01/15
Recycling Old Ceilings

Denver Public Schools found a way to promote sustainability and benefit their own construction projects with Armstong’s Recycling Program.

With the adoption of its Sustainability Management Plan, Denver Public Schools (DPS) is challenging students, teachers, staff, and parents to practice an “ethic of sustainability” to help reduce the impact its 185 schools have on the environment.

A major focus area of the plan calls for measurable improvements in landfill diversion rates and reduced greenhouse gas emissions from solid waste.

When renovations began on a 14-story office building DPS was converting to a vertical campus in downtown Denver, school officials met with the contractor to set sustainability goals for the project. “Recycling and repurposing of the materials that came out of the building was probably the number one item on that sustainability list,” explains DPS Construction Project Manager Katheryn Zeeb.

A large part of the construction waste consisted of old ceiling tiles that had been removed from the building during renovation. The contractor recommended that DPS recycle the old ceiling tiles through the Armstrong Ceiling Recycling Program.

The program enables building owners to ship discarded ceiling tiles from demolition and renovation projects to the nearest Armstrong plant as an alternative to landfill disposal. The discarded tiles are then used to manufacture new ceiling tiles.

Through its participation in the program, DPS eventually recycled over 131,000 square feet of used ceiling tiles, diverting nearly 67 tons of construction waste from landfills.

“The recycling program has proven to be advantageous from so many different levels – from savings on container costs and landfill fees to stewardship of resources for future generations,” says DPS Construction Services Director James Allen. “It’s been a good experience. Now that we’ve done it once, we’ll continue to do it. We’re a school district and we are life-long learners.”

www.armstrong.com

This article originally appeared in the issue of .

Featured

  • restroom sinks

    CSU Dominguez Hills Standardizes Plumbing to Improve Restroom Maintenance and Efficiency

    At California State University, Dominguez Hills, facilities leaders have taken steps to standardize restroom fixtures as part of a broader effort to improve maintenance efficiency and control long-term costs.

  • UT System Board of Regents Approves $108M Housing Complex

    The University of Texas System Board of Regents recently announced the approval of a new, $108-million housing complex at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP), according to a news release. The facility will stand four stories and have a total of 456 new beds for freshmen students.

  • textured paper collage shows a school building on fire as a fire truck sprays water into the flames

    Why a Fire Loss Is More than Flames

    We've all seen what fire damage can do to a property, but the types of damage building owners often encounter after a fire loss can exceed expectations. Having full awareness of the different forms of damage properties can sustain helps owners respond faster, reduce continued damage, and get back on the road to recovery in short order.

  • University of Southern Mississippi Starts Construction on Oyster Hatchery

    The University of Southern Mississippi (USM) recently announced that construction has begun on a new oyster hatchery at its Gulf Coast Research Laboratory (GCRL) Thad Cochran Marine Aquaculture Center (TCMAC) Cedar Point campus in Ocean Springs, Miss., according to a news release.

Digital Edition