The 6 Best Green Buildings Materials for Offices

Employees want refreshing spaces that are attractive in their design and health benefits. Green materials tend to contain less harmful chemicals than standard ones, making office air purer and healthier for the body. Many are also more flexible, which allows construction workers to use them for eye-catching structures and layouts.

When employees are satisfied, so are employers. Businesses revel in the advantages of a reinvigorated workforce and enjoyable workspaces. When your office is clean and appealing, you’re likely to stay there longer, feel happier and produce more work. Green building materials are a win for all. Employees enjoy better working environments, employers earn higher profits and the planet thrives from less strain.

Eco-friendly building is here to stay, and it may be next for your workplace. Here are six of the best materials to use for offices.

1. Bamboo

Bamboo upholds a reputation of being durable, attractive and quickly renewable. It’s also resistant to plant pathogens and insects, reducing its chances of being destroyed by rot or beetles. You want your company to stay around for a long time, so find the sturdiest materials to match. Bamboo’s lightweight qualities make it easy to transport and handle, and farmers harvest it by hand instead of using energy-intensive machines.

Builders often use bamboo for flooring because of its resemblance to hardwood. You can also find it in the structural framing, walls or doors of many green buildings.

2. Recycled Glass

Glass is one of the few materials you can recycle endlessly without it losing its purity or quality. Some materials degrade after a few cycles and no longer serve their purpose, but you can make the most out of glass. Many construction projects have done precisely that by using it in floor and wall tiles as well as countertops.

Nearly all the glass in product packaging and buildings consists of recycled glass. Manufacturers use cullet — particles from crushed bottles and jars — to make new molten glass, which diminishes energy usage. For every 10% of cullet they use, the energy needed to power their furnaces drops by almost three percent.

3. Recycled Aluminum

Recycled metal works well for reducing energy output because it produces less energy than newly made metal. Aluminum, in particular, uses only five percent of the energy that original aluminum does. This gap in energy usage can majorly cut down on operating costs and streamline the production process. Using aluminum in a construction project can help a building meet the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design standards, certifying it as a green structure.

Aluminum is resistant to rust, long-lasting and lightweight. Its ability to reflect sunlight can decrease indoor temperatures and reduce the energy costs associated with running your AC.

4. Linoleum

Linoleum consists of linseed oil, limestone and cork dust. All these materials are sustainable and biodegradable, meaning that linoleum emits no harmful VOCs once it’s installed. Builders often use it for flooring, and its flexibility allows for cutting it into intricate designs. Linoleum lends itself well to other components besides flooring, however. Try it on a countertop, table or desk. This material is exceptionally more versatile than interior designers give it credit for, adding a fashionable flair to various structures.

5. Ferrock

Ferrock is an alternative to concrete made from waste steel dust and silica. It proves more solid than Portland concrete — the most common type — and more sustainable because of its CO2-removing qualities. When this material is poured and begins drying, it absorbs more carbon than it emits, making it carbon-negative. Lower levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide can lessen the threat of global warming by regulating worldwide climates.

Ferrock requires little maintenance after it’s installed and is mostly chemically inactive.

6. Cross-Laminated Timber

Creating cross-laminated timber involves gluing or nailing pieces of wood together to create a stronger structure. Because builders often construct it before sending it to a site, it takes less time to build. Workers can indulge in their new green offices sooner, and construction workers undergo less stress from rushing to meet deadlines. This technique also increases sustainability by using reclaimed wood.

Cross-laminated timber works well for roofs, walls, floors and more. It undergoes extensive quality control to produce the best product with the least waste.

Sustainable Materials Transform Every Environment

Your workplace can embody sustainability and beauty by implementing green building materials. A high-quality office produces excellent employees who love coming to work each day. Say goodbye to dreary cubicles and hello to bright, open spaces.