Circular benches in Ghent made of durable concrete

16 November 2021

The City of Ghent is taking a new step towards a circular economy and unveils 2 circular benches made of durable concrete.

The redesigned square at the intersection of Brusselsepoortstraat and Sint-Lievenspoortstraat in Ghent, near the primary school De Zonnepoort, has benches and ornaments made of durable concrete. The City of Ghent is again taking a new step towards a circular economy.

Ghent as a circular pioneer

The renovated square at primary school De Zonnepoort recently acquired circular street furniture: 2 benches and 4 ornaments made of concrete with low-CO₂ cement. The cement was largely made using by-products such as slag and ashes from the steel industry, and the aggregates in the concrete were replaced by mineral by-products. Soon, a fire escape made of sustainable concrete will be installed at the back of the school.

Ghent is the European pioneer in the field of circular economy. Cooperation with companies and educational institutions such as Ghent University is indispensable to create clean technology and to apply it more widely. Ghent does this by experimenting and co-creating.

European project

The sustainable concrete composition of the street furniture was developed in ResourceFull's labs and produced by the company Urbastyle. This project is the first of 3 demo projects of the URBCON project. This European project runs from 2018 to 2023 and is run by the City of Ghent and the Ghent University. The aim is to reduce the CO₂ footprint and the use of primary materials in the production of concrete and then to introduce the sustainable concrete in the cities.

By using a specially developed activator, we have replaced most of the cement with slag, an industrial by-product of the steel industry. As a result, the carbon footprint is 65% lower.

Wouter Crijns, Managing Director ResourceFull, partner of the URBCON project

Safer and greener square

The square at primary school De Zonnepoort did not only get circular benches, the whole place was renewed. The traffic situation is now clearer and safer for pedestrians and cyclists, a total of more than 600 m² was softened and several large green areas for trees were added. The historic pump will soon be surrounded by greenery and the terrace at the sandwich shop will be given more space.

Thanks to the reconstruction, the square is now much safer for pedestrians and cyclists. Because the city has softened 600 m², the square will also be much greener in the future and it will become a pleasant place for the neighbourhood.