22 March 2022:

Observing growing stockpiles of old road cones, Auckland Estimator Beaudene Pumipi began thinking there’s got to be a better home for these than the landfill.

From that initial thought, Fulton Hogan is now gathering old cones from around the country and delivering then to Otaki-based Matta Products to make safety matting to help keep children safe in playgrounds.

Matta Products specialises in safety matting for playgrounds and for industrial sites, including Fulton Hogan’s.

“It made sense to look for a second life for them, and we think we may have found it,” Beaudene says. “It’s a way of taking a safety product that’s at the end of its life, and giving it into another safety use.”

Fulton Hogan imports approximately 100 tonne of road cones annually, replacing cones that are beyond their use-by date due to wear-and-tear, fading and loss of luminosity.

“Road cones are a highly visible symbol of our work, and their sheer number means we can make a sizeable difference environmentally by re-using them,” says Beaudene.

Matta Products Director Dylan Matthews says PVC is the main ingredient in safety matting, and a new source of recycled raw material is “most welcome”.

“It’s always exciting to find familiar products that are typically destined for landfill – like road cones – that can be repurposed into our safety surfacing products. It is great to be partnering with Fulton Hogan on this initiative and helping make a positive environmental difference.”

The cones are delivered to Matta Products at Fulton Hogan’s cost. With time, Fulton Hogan aims to encourage other contractors to recycle their road cones similarly.