Incredibly efficient carbon capture
Why hemp?
Hemp is a truly remarkable plant. Ready to harvest in 4 months, it absorbs around 11 tonnes of carbon per hectare per year – more than double the average for commercial forestry. This makes it one of the most efficient carbon capture mechanisms available.
It’s used in a wide range of textiles, paper and other products when grown for fibre, and the woody inner core of the plant is processed into shiv that’s great for particleboard and insulation.
The annual hemp crop doesn’t compete with food supplies because it integrates into field rotation cycles and actually improves the yields of subsequent crops. It can also be grown without herbicides, pesticides or fungicides, so it’s good for biodiversity and soil health.
Hempsil
Hempsil is our unique insulating material which optimises the natural characteristics of hemp shiv to regulate moisture in the air. This allows it to maintain indoor relative humidity within a healthy range for humans and the building fabric, but also behave as if it were a much more dense material.
Air quality
The exceptional performance of our natural materials improves indoor air quality by regulating relative humidity at an average of 55%. This is ideal for human health and also creates a building fabric that lasts.
Insulation
High levels of natural fibre insulation mean buildings stay warm in the winter months and cool in the summer.
Adaptable
The wall, floor and roof panels are individually demountable allowing alterations without waste, so our buildings can easily adapt over time.
Low maintenance
Removable panels also offer easy access for alterations or upgrades to plumbing and electrics. And if a building element is damaged, it can be returned and replaced with a new component.
Environment
Hemp is one of nature’s most efficient short-cycle carbon capture crops. Compared to forestry, it’s at least 275% more effective at removing carbon from the atmosphere, and when grown in rotation with food, it improves subsequent crop yields.
Construction
We manufacture our components in a factory-controlled environment, improving efficiency, quality control and reducing costs. They can be assembled in many ways, including in large, combined panels or whole building segments, and delivered through spaces as narrow as a doorway at inaccessible sites.
Insights
Conventional construction suffers from chronic low productivity. There is a shortage of skilled labour, leading to cost inflation and delays. In the UK alone, the construction sector’s workforce has decreased by 273,000 since 2019. The sector is also responsible for the about 20-30% of all known serious occupational injuries2. Our goal is to meet these challenges with digitally manufactured construction.