RSE is thrilled to be published within the Sustainable Business COP (SB COP), a global initiative led by the Brazilian National Confederation of Industry (CNI). Our case study “Industrial Innovation – RSE-TMB ®” was published under the Green Jobs and Skills theme.
SB COP has created a formal, structured channel for private sector engagement in climate policy, showcasing climate-action projects that can feed into COP negotiations and influence public policy.
RSE’s modular solutions include the innovative and low-carbon Timber Modular Build (TMB®) system that achieves between 70%-100% reduction in embodied carbon compared with traditional enclosures used in water and wastewater treatment systems. This transformation underpins climate resilience, provides a scalable solution for investment in clean water, and directly contributes to net-zero targets.
The TMB® delivers essential water infrastructure while creating green jobs, developing skills, and enabling scalable, climate-resilient solutions; providing a tangible example of private sector leadership aligned with SB COP30’s Green Jobs and Skills priorities.
This achievement reflects the creativity and commitment of our team, and the close collaboration with Ecosystems Technologies and Scottish Water, together with the support of Built Environment
The COP30 delegates and observers look for industry examples that combine mitigation, adaptation and employment, which the TMB® provides.
Mitigation:
- Prefabricated off-site, reducing on-site emissions (travel and fuel on site).
- Modular timber system for critical water infrastructure.
Adaptation:
- Avoiding high embodied carbon by using UK timber.
- Reducing the embodied carbon by 65%-97% (depending on configurations) compared to conventional steel or GRP alternatives.
Employment:
- Providing new low-carbon skills for the future of green technology.
- Supports local suppliers and manufacturers.
The alignment of the TMB® to SB COP30 additionally showcases the ability of the industry to offer leadership across:
- Circular Economy and Materials – timber is a far more circular material that can be reused, over industry alternatives.
- Bioeconomy and Nature-Based Solutions – over 80% of the TMB® enclosure is formed from biotic materials.
- Sustainable and Resilient Cities – the enclosures that are essential for water and wastewater treatment systems can be made from low embodied carbon materials and sourced from local timber.
- Green Jobs and Skills – as the use of mass timber enclosures scales, other ways to make greater use of this natural resource will be discovered, maintaining the need and growth of green jobs and skills.
RSE Net Zero and Circularity Lead, Andy Louden, commented on the TMB®’s recognition by SB COP:
“ We’re so honoured that our work has been recognised by SB COP30 as part of the Green Jobs & Skills theme. This achievement reflects the creativity and commitment of our team, and the close collaboration with Ecosystems Technologies and Scottish Water, together with the support of Built Environment – Smarter Transformation.
Together, we’ve shown that using timber in heavy-duty, critical water-treatment infrastructure isn’t a future aspiration, it’s something we can deliver now. We hope to build on this momentum and start reducing embodied carbon emissions across our essential public infrastructure and water solutions”.
RSE is proud to have led the development of a low-carbon timber modular build system in conjunction with Ecosystems Technologies, to secure and protect the infrastructure that is essential to the provision and protection of water. The TMB® will enable the rapid, secure and climate-resilient deployment of critical national water facilities of the future.
You can find out more about our TMB® solutions and read RSE’s case study feature in SB COP here: Timber Modular Buildings (TMB®s)
