Recycled steel by-product used at Sheffield Forgemasters

Large volumes of concrete being used at Sheffield Forgemasters will include a recycled steel by-product to reduce carbon emissions

A major concrete pour at Sheffield Forgemasters new 13,000-tonne forging line uses a recycled steel by-product to reduce carbon by 30%. The base for a ‘Top-Hat-Furnace Quench-Tank’, involved an excavation of roughly 1,000m³, 4m below ground level, installation of more than 90 tonnes of reinforcement, and pouring of more than 1,000 tonnes of structural concrete.

All the concrete for the company’s forge project incorporates ‘ground granulated blast furnace slag’ (GGBS), a recycled material from steel production which acts as a replacement for cement, improving sustainability, and reducing carbon emissions by around 30%.

Craig Fisher, Sheffield Forgemasters’ programmes director, said: “We have completed the first major concrete pour for our forge project and the inclusion of GGBS as a cement substitute will clearly improve the environmental effects of casting large volumes of concrete. Both our forge project, and the new machining facility, which has now been granted planning permission, will use GGBS structural concrete, adding strength, workability and durability, as well as environmental benefits.”

As the company’s £900 million recapitalisation programme to strengthen manufacture for UK defence gains pace, up to 10,000 tonnes of concrete per month will be poured for its forge project, including works to the main press pit, furnace bases, and ancillary structures.

Sheffield Forgemasters’ requirement for structural concrete will increase once it contracts main civils work for its nearby 35,000m² machining facility. VINCI Building is the main contractor on the forge project, which will create the UK’s largest open-die forging line.