How two local companies have taken hands to become an eco-friendly success story

Two South African companies, Isowall and Crystal Concrete Works, recently partnered up to manufacture bricks through bottom ash - proving that one man’s trash really is another man’s treasure.  

In response to the Gauteng Industrial Symbiosis Programme’s (GISP) call to eco-friendlier production, Isowall and Crystal Concrete Works came together to find a cleaner solution to waste management.   

GISP is a resource efficient approach where the unused or residual resources of one company is used by another. This ‘recycling’ of resources typically results in the mutual economic, social and environmental benefits for both companies involved. Resources that are repurposed can include materials, energy, water, assets, logistics, expert knowledge.   

Two polar products with different needs   

From face value, Isowall and Crystal Concrete Works are two very different companies. Isowall, whose main factory is based in Pretoria, has been Africa’s leading polystyrene and panel manufacturer since 1990. They mainly cater for the insulation, construction, packaging, agricultural and automotive markets on a largescale. Crystal Concrete Works, on the other hand, is an informal concrete product manufacturer located in Mamelodi. Their sole product has been concrete pillars for building and housing purposes, supplying local customers and one hardware store in Waltloo.   

An ecological problem formed by waste 

Isowall operates two coal fired boilers which produce bottom ash and once every two weeks, two trucks are filled and used to dump this bottom ash at a landfill site. The problem with this is that bottom ash contains toxins that can negatively impact both humans and the environment. When bottom ash is dumped, there is a high risk that it spills over into ground or surface water. The challenge to Isowall was to put their bottom ash to some better use.  An eco-friendly solution through an unlikely partnership  

Read More: Uprooting the myths surrounding the waste economy

In 2018, a symbiotic match was made between Isowall and Crystal Concrete Works to tackle this problem of Isowall’s waste management. Ash from Isowall is now being disposed of at Crystal Concrete Works where it’s used to make bricks. To date, approximately 30 000 bricks have been manufactured using bottom ash and three people have gained a job through this partnership.   

Through the GISP intervention, the synergy between Isowall and Crystal Concrete Works resulted in reduced waste disposal, reduced GHG emissions and economic upliftment for Crystal Concrete Works.   

A good news story for both the environment and the economy.   

This post is sponsored by GISP produced by Brandstudio24 for News24.