Groundbreaking binder reduces the life cycle embodied carbon of Troldtekt® acoustic panels by 46%
With the new Troldtekt® LEC binder, customers still receive all the well-known benefits of Troldtekt® acoustic panels, but with a significantly reduced life cycle embodied carbon compared with both white cement and FUTURECEM™. This has been achieved by replacing the use of traditional cement with the new, patent-pending binder developed in collaboration with the Kingspan Group.
With the new Troldtekt® LEC (Lower Embodied Carbon) binder, we are now taking our biggest step yet on the journey towards reducing our life cycle embodied carbon. The launch of the new binder means that Troldtekt acoustic panels have 46% lower life cycle embodied carbon than our panels based on white cement and 15% lower life cycle embodied carbon than Troldtekt panels based on FUTURECEM™.
Michael Heeager Nystrup, CEO of Troldtekt A/S comments, “We are ambitious on behalf of people, the planet and our own business. That is why we continue to strive to reduce the embodied carbon of our products. Troldtekt LEC is the clearest example yet of our accelerated research and development in recent years.”
Since 1935, Troldtekt has manufactured acoustic panels manufactured from wood and cement. The new binder consists of proven mineral raw materials and recycled by-products from other manufacturing processes. The panels’ acoustic performance, durability and fire performance remain at the same high standards customers already know.
A refined ‘greige’ colour
Troldtekt acoustic with LEC not only offers a significantly lower life cycle embodied carbon, but the colour tone of the panels also complements a wide range of building types and applications.
“Troldtekt acoustic with LEC features a refined design with a light ‘greige’ colour but is also available as either an unpainted or painted panel. For specifiers, this presents an attractive alternative to our white cement-based panels,” says Michael Heeager Nystrup.
He continues, “However, customers seeking the lowest life cycle embodied carbon from Troldtekt acoustic panels should choose the Troldtekt LEC binder. It also offers the highest proportion of secondary material, reaching 25% in panels made with the LEC binder.”
It is worth noting that specifiers will still be able to select Troldtekt panels based on traditional white cement as well as variants based on the CO₂e reduced FUTURECEM™ binder.
Stronger capabilities for innovation
We developed the new binder in collaboration with Ireland-based IKON, the innovation centre of our parent company, Kingspan. One of the key goals of Kingspan’s sustainability programme, ‘Planet Passionate’, is to reduce the impact of purchased raw materials, known as Scope 3 emissions in a company’s carbon accounting.
“At Troldtekt, we have worked with sustainability initiatives for more than 15 years, publishing our first CSR report back in 2010. We manufacture our acoustic panels using 98.8% renewable energy and the wood used in the panels is a carbon-neutral raw material. This means that the binder is where we can achieve the most significant reductions,” says Michael Heeager Nystrup.
He concludes, “Since we became part of Kingspan Group, we have gained greater resources for innovation in recent years, and this is clearly reflected in the new Troldtekt LEC binder, which has been developed specifically for our wood wool acoustic panels. It is a milestone that supports the construction industry’s design and build, coupling excellent acoustics and a reduced life cycle embodied carbon.”
Troldtekt acoustic with LEC is available in Denmark and Germany.
FAKTA: Life cycle embodied carbon from Troldtekt® acoustic with the three different binder options (GWP - kg CO2e/m2)
The CO₂e is calculated across the full life cycle of the panels. Troldtekt acoustic with LEC has 46% lower CO₂e than Troldtekt acoustic panels based on white cement and a 15% lower CO₂e than Troldtekt acoustic based on FUTURECEM™.