The life cycle of the building is longer

Developments such as urbanization and regulation, as well as ongoing sustainability trends, have had a significant impact on the construction chemicals market. We interviewed Wolf Meyer-Hevekerl of Worlée-Chemie to find out about the current trend.
to what extent have developments such as progressive urbanization affected the development of building chemical products?Wolf Meyer-Hevekerl:
lack of space associated with urbanization and the increased demand for affordable living space are leading to greater living density and modular building concepts
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. The construction chemicals used must increasingly meet these requirements in the future. The longer life cycle required for buildings is closely related to sustainable building materials that are more environmentally friendly, last longer and are easier to recycle. As a result, product development is increasingly concerned with the increased use of water-based systems and renewable raw materials, which can also be used in new manufacturing technologies, such as 3D printing.
Wolf Meyer-Hevekerl is working in the field of applied technology at Worlée.
where do you see further trends in building chemicals?Meyer-Hevekerl: In addition
, functional coatings or building materials are the key words here. Today, there are not enough products just to accomplish the desired tasks. Today, other functions, such as self-cleaning, antibacterial properties and reduced levels of hazardous substances, have been incorporated into building chemistry systems. In this regard, care must be taken to ensure that the solutions found are as environmentally friendly and sustainable as possible.
of these regulations have a particular impact on this area?Meyer-Hevekerl:
REACH has a special impact on product development in Europe. The partial elimination of raw materials and restrictions on the registration obligations for new development projects in the form of larger time and cost expenditures face specific challenges for the development sector. Clearly, these basic principles make it more difficult to implement ideas. Therefore, a new approach to product development is necessary.
the focus of epoxy research and development?
Meyer-Hevekerl: The
hardeners will continue to focus on VOC-free and water-free products. Our efforts in polymer curing agents are also focused on these two areas at Worlée. These topics present enormous challenges, especially in the context of the polymer structure defined by REACH. Renewable raw materials are also an area of increasing concern.