BlueScope COLORBOND Sustainability Profile

Why COLORBOND® steel:

Tested and refined for over 50 years in some of Australia’s most challenging environments. Inspired by the natural colours and forms of its most unique landscapes. Lived in and relied on by generations of Australians, past and future.

Sustainability: COLORBOND® steel is durable and resilient to Australia's harsh climate and its long life helps conserve resources and energy that may otherwise be invested in products with a shorter life span. All COLORBOND® steel contains recycled content and the steel itself in COLORBOND® steel is 100% recyclable. In some cases it can be reused without reprocessing, again saving on energy and resource use.

Thermal efficiency: Choosing the right roof colour and roofing material can mean real savings on energy bills and help create more comfortable temperatures within a home. Twenty-one of the core Classic colours in the COLORBOND® steel range (that’s all of them except for Night Sky®) together with the six Matt colours feature special Thermatech® solar reflectance technology. Thermatech® technology is designed to reflect more of the sun’s heat on hot sunny days, which can help keep homes cooler in the summer.* In addition, choosing pale toned roofs may also contribute to cooler local communities. Note that any potential glare problems that are sometimes associated with pale roofs may be overcome with design elements like orientation and roof pitch.

The solar absorptance of the different colours varies, and can be checked by comparing the values printed on the back of COLORBOND® steel swatches and on our colour pages.

CORSTRIP® film: Some COLORBOND® steel products are delivered with CORSTRIP® film to protect the product from damage during rollforming, storage, transport and installation. CORSTRIP® film is made from 100% low-density polyethylene (LDPE) and is suitable for recycling. Occasionally strippable film may be supplied in lieu of CORSTRIP® film for operational reasons.

End consumers who directly purchase COLORBOND® steel with CORSTRIP® film/strippable film in a retail environment can recycle the plastic film via the national REDcycle Program. BlueScope partners with REDcycle to reduce the amount of plastic packaging going to landfill. The REDcycle Program recycles soft plastic items such as CORSTRIP® film/strippable film into items like indoor and outdoor furniture. REDcycle drop off points can be found here. Importantly the film must be cut into smaller, A3 size pieces before returning.

Builders who are interested in recycling CORSTRIP® film/strippable film should contact their relevant waste provider to discuss requirements for recycling this type of material.

BlueScope continues to work on other potential solutions to facilitate additional recycling options for the CORSTRIP® film/strippable film and ultimately aims to introduce recycled content into the film in order to 'close the loop'.

*Results will depend on roof colour, roof shape, level and location of insulation, type, location, shape, and function of the building.