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Time to support using surplus steel tubing

The use of surplus steel in construction and infrastructure projects can deliver huge savings on material costs, lead times and carbon emissions

With over 45 years history of supplying surplus steel to the construction sector, Cleveland Steel & Tubes have pioneered the concept of the 'Greener Steel' and the circular economy. Our inventory is comprised of steel tubes recovered predominantly from steel mills and the oil and gas industry. For the most part, the pipes are surplus stock that is produced to a high standard – but never actually used in the project. We source this product worldwide, store it at our 100-acre facility in North Yorkshire, UK and then supply it to customers worldwide.

Our core client base is comprised of major civil engineering and construction contractors, who purchase steel pipes for infrastructure and national construction projects. High profile structures that contain steel supplied by us include; the Olympic stadium in London, the roof of Wimbledon Court No. 1, Canary Wharf, wind turbines, marina developments and the London Eye. A strong export customer base has purchased pipes for projects as far afield as Australia and Hong Kong.

Cleveland Steel & Tubes is an active member of the Alliance of Sustainable Building Products, UK Green Building Council, Supply Chain Sustainability School; and the British Constructional Steelworks Association. Read our paper on sustainability and greener steel below.

Life Cycle Analysis

With the environmental impact of major projects becoming an increasingly high priority for construction contractors, Cleveland Steel & Tubes recently commissioned independent research to quantify the carbon savings generated by repurposing steel tubes. Giraffe Innovation, a consultancy that has worked with major corporations including Dell, Virgin Atlantic Airways, GSK, and Willmott Dixon, carried out the study. The life cycle analysis aimed to identify how ‘green’ Cleveland Steel’s surplus steel was, compared to new production steel. You can find the report on our Downloads page. 

Employee inspecting steel tubes

96% Carbon Savings

Giraffe Innovation found that the greenhouse gas emissions savings were as high as 96% when using surplus steel compared to buying brand new steel. Repurposing existing tubes was also far more environmentally friendly than sending them back to the steel mill for recycling. The life cycle analysis considered a comprehensive range of factors, including material processing, logistics, and disposal of any generated waste.

The reuse of steel provided by Cleveland Steel & Tubes means that its business model is clearly aligned with the key principles of the circular economy. Repurposing steel provides a substantial reduction in the carbon footprint of a core building material – which can help construction contractors to meet their sustainability obligations. It can be incorporated within a BREEAM assessment, which is the world’s leading sustainability assessment method for major construction and infrastructure projects.

The majority of our stock is self-colour material but the surplus oilfield packages we purchase are occasionally coated. To ensure this material is fit for alternative applications, we refurbish the material in-house to remove these external coatings and any excess is recycled & disposed of responsibly.

Download a copy of our Greener Steel sustainability research here.