The platform will enable Bay Area businesses to access building products and other resources efficiently.
San Francisco, CA. (September 22, 2021) — Rheaply, a climate tech company that combines a resource-sharing network with a user-friendly resource management platform, today announced funding from the Carbon Neutral Cities Alliance (CNCA) Game Changer Fund to build an online exchange for building products and other resources. The exchange, which is set to launch in late 2022, will enable businesses in the greater Bay Area to access surplus and salvaged resources at cost-effective rates.
One of the primary purposes of this exchange is to address the magnitude of waste that is generated by construction and demolition (C&D) activities. According to the EPA, C&D activities in the United States generated about 600 million tons of waste in 2018. In San Francisco alone, over 100,000 tons of C&D material end up in landfills annually rather than get recycled. With new construction slated to accelerate worldwide, reaching a projected 2.5 trillion square feet by 2060, it is clear that, from an environmental perspective, there is a dire need for change.
Through this partnership, Rheaply’s proven resource management technology will establish a sustainable means of procuring building products, many of which might otherwise have been sent to landfills. Being able to access these usable salvaged and surplus items, rather than having to buy new, full-price materials, will provide cost savings to the Bay Area’s commercial construction, small business, and nonprofit sectors. For organizations looking for supplies for their physical spaces, the online exchange will provide insights into what resources are available and make transactions simple. Especially for small businesses and nonprofits, the time and cost savings could be highly impactful.
“Achieving our City’s climate goals is going to take ingenuity, innovation, and persistence,” said Debbie Raphael, Director of the San Francisco Department of the Environment. “Through this partnership with Rheaply we’re creating a new, online exchange where businesses can benefit from no- or low-cost materials recovered from construction and demolition projects. Facilitating access to usable materials benefits the environment, builds green jobs, and enhances cost-effectiveness. That is a winning combination!”
“We at Gensler believe it is imperative to set the standard for a sustainable built environment,” said Marcus Hopper, Senior Associate at Gensler. “Using Rheaply, we anticipate that we will be able to more effectively share resources, which will aid us as we pursue our goal of eliminating all net emissions associated with our work by 2030 and enable us to have a positive impact on Bay Area communities.”
“We are proud to partner with the City of San Francisco and CNCA to infuse circularity into the built environment. This development is one key part of our vision for circular cities, and we hope it will inspire other urban areas to adopt circularity,” said Garry Cooper, CEO and Co-Founder of Rheaply.
To learn more about this partnership and the future of material reuse, attend the panel “Building a Regional Material Reuse Ecosystem: Vision to Practice” at Greenbuild 2021.
