NEST tests CO₂-reduced building materials
With the new NEST unit "Beyond.Zero", Empa, Eawag and Omya are sending a strong signal for climate-friendly construction. From August 2025, a real test environment for CO₂-reduced and CO₂-negative materials that are intended to make the entire life cycle of buildings more sustainable will be created on the NEST research and innovation platform.
New partnership between NEST and Omya: Back row, from left to right: Reto Largo, Managing Director of NEST at Empa; Prof. Matthias Sulzer, Head of the Engineering Sciences Department at Empa; Dr. Mateusz Wyrzykowski, Group Leader of Concrete Technology at Empa; Dr. Philipp Hunziker, Vice President of Research & Development at Omya; Prof. Dr. Tanja Zimmermann, Director of Empa; Dr. Philipp Müller, Vice President Construction, Omya; Enrico Marchesi, Innovation Manager at NEST; Claudio Lotti, Head of Sales Construction Switzerland, Omya. Front row, from left to right: Dr. Michel Schenker and Dr. Fabrizio Orlando, Senior Scientists, Omya. Image: Empa
The “Beyond.Zero” project brings together leading industry and research partners to test innovations in the construction industry under real-life conditions. The focus is on the development of new material technologies with significantly lower emissions and high innovation potential for the construction industry.
A central element is the cement-reduced concrete developed by Empa and Omya. By replacing up to 70 percent of the clinker content with natural minerals, CO₂ emissions can be significantly reduced without compromising mechanical properties or durability.
Practical test for new concrete technology
The building material is being comprehensively validated in a real construction context for the first time in the NEST unit. From processing and volume stability to durability in operation. “Only by testing it in real buildings can we show that the new type of concrete is not only ecologically convincing, but can also withstand the demands of practical use,” explains Empa researcher Mateusz Wyrzykowski. This creates a basis for translating sustainable concretes into marketable solutions more quickly.
Industry meets research
As the world’s leading producer of industrial minerals, Omya is contributing its expertise and production capacities to the project. “The fact that we can test sustainable building materials directly in NEST under real conditions accelerates the transfer of innovations into climate-friendly construction methods,” emphasizes Empa Director Tanja Zimmermann.
In addition to the cement-reduced concrete, further CO₂-reduced and CO₂-negative material solutions are to be developed and tested in the “Beyond.Zero” project. The aim is a construction system that significantly reduces the ecological footprint over the entire life cycle, from production to operation and dismantling.
Signal for the construction industry
With this project, Empa and its partners are creating a practical platform that will provide groundbreaking impetus for the transformation of the construction sector. In view of the high proportion of emissions from cement and concrete production worldwide, the project could become a milestone towards climate-neutral construction.