Zinc: helping protect the planet
Galvanising uses zinc to form a protective coating around mild steel. But what impact does zinc have on the environment?

The answer is that it has a positive effect on the world. One of the commonest components of the earth’s crust, zinc is completely non-toxic and occurs naturally in soil, air, water and the biosphere – plants, animals and humans – making it an essential element in the health of all living organisms. In addition, less than 1% of atmospheric zinc comes from man’s activities – the rest being produced by nature.

Reliable & recyclable
Galvanising is the most important application of zinc. By protecting steel against corrosion – a problem estimated to cost over 4% of the UK GNP each year – it helps to reduce a significant drain on the economy.

The zinc-steel combination also delivers considerable other benefits: a zinc coating prolongs steel’s durability and requires only low maintenance and minimal service interruption, so contributing to low budgets without compromising on safety and aesthetics. What’s more, diminishing levels of SO2 in the atmosphere also mean that a zinc coating now lasts longer than ever before, making it even more cost-efficient. Additionally, new technologies are now making it possible to improve zinc’s performance whilst reducing the amount actually needed.

Another benefit of zinc is that it is 100% recyclable and sustainable. It can be recycled indefinitely without loss of its physical or chemical properties and its reserves on the planet are not fixed, having actually increased since the 1950s.

For all these reasons, zinc is a truly efficient and sustainable material that reinforces economic growth and progress whilst protecting the environment.

And by their very nature, all these benefits are automatically transmitted to galvanising itself – making the system of applying zinc to steel a highly cost-effective and positive process that makes significant economic and environmental sense.