End-of-life tyres used in Newstead visitors centre

ATS Euromaster is helping to construct the largest single tyre wall in the world after supplying a truckload of scrap tyres to an exciting rural development project in Newstead, Nottinghamshire. The tyres are being used to form the building blocks of a new visitor centre and café, after Newstead became one of six villages to receive a grant from the Village SOS project, sponsored by Big Lottery Fund and the BBC.

Staff working on the Newstead Enterprise project pledged to construct this new facility with eco-friendly materials and using techniques which would offer training for local people that could lead to employment – and approached ATS Euromaster for the provision of 1,500 end-of-life tyres.

The tyres are being used to form the structural walls in an environmentally-friendly construction process pioneered 25 years ago in New Mexico and increasing in popularity in Europe. It sees tyres rammed with earth to form solid walls.

Penny Altham, managing director of Newstead Enterprise, said: “Sourcing 1,500 scrap tyres is not easy as we needed an equal mix of two specific tyre sizes in a relatively short time frame. ATS Euromaster was an obvious first choice as they have local centres throughout the area, plus the scale of a national network to generate the required volumes.  We really appreciate them coming on board to help the Newstead community.”

Each of the scrap tyres are being rammed with earth using a sledgehammer and laid in courses to form a highly insulating wall at the rear of the visitor centre.  The construction process is very simple and can be carried out reasonably quickly by an un-skilled workforce.

“Using tyres instead of bricks and concrete will benefit the visitor centre throughout its lifetime,” explains Miss Altham. “We’ve designed the building in such a way that the thick tyre walls will help to store heat from the sun and slowly release it back into the building when the temperature drops. It means we can heat and cool the building year-round with our own generated means.”

Richard Byrne, group health, safety and environmental manager at ATS Euromaster, added: “We aim to reduce, re-use and recycle our waste wherever we can and this is a great example of how end-of-life tyres can be put to use in an innovative way. We’re very keen to support initiatives which benefit the people and communities close to our local centres.”

Newstead Enterprise is working to transform a 220-acre site of former colliery spoil heaps into a thriving, multi-use Country Park and resource for local people. Since the colliery closed the area has naturally matured into a regionally significant haven for wildlife, but has been slowly spoiled by vehicles driving through the site.