The Charter is designed to establish what sustainability means for piling specialists, including social, environmental and economic practices. Critically, it also sets minimum standards for FPS members to ensure that the FPS is leading the way in sustainability within the piling and foundations sector through collective knowledge share, innovation, and real-world insight.

The launch of the Sustainability Charter marks a milestone for the FPS

Speaking about the launch of the Charter, FPS chair, John Chick, said: "The launch of the Sustainability Charter marks a milestone for the FPS acting as a true differentiator for its members and more importantly for clients serious about sustainability. It hosts some 30 plus specific commitments spanning both site practices and corporate, designed to accelerate FPS members to net carbon zero and beyond!"

The new Charter brings up to date the FPS's sustainability commitments and ensures they are aligned with the UN's Sustainable Development Goals - global standards used by all working within this space. It also encompasses more than just commitments to carbon reduction, it also includes wider environmental, social, and economic practices.

The FPS's commitment to carbon reporting and benchmarking forms a large part of the Charter and looks towards the challenges of Scope 3; Scope 3 covers all indirect emissions from piling companies, mostly arising from the use of carbon-intensive materials like cement and steel. Covering around 90% of FPS's members' site emissions, the Charter will establish a benchmark and then seek to reduce carbon in the pursuit of net zero by 2050.

Chick added: "Supporting the Charter, the FPS will be delivering ‘Concrete Forum 2024: Today's Challenges, Tomorrow's Solutions', in February 2024, which will look at decarbonisation and other site challenges surrounding sustainability."

There are many supporting documents to help FPS members achieve the commitments in the Charter, such as the European Federation of Foundation Contractors (EFFC) Carbon Reduction Guide, and the EFFC Circular Economy Guide. Supporting the Charter is also the European Federation of Foundation Contractors (EFFC) / Deep Foundations Institute (DFI) Carbon Calculator, which ultimately will be used to capture Scope 3 for all projects.

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