An Australian Steel Institute (ASI) certification scheme designed to lift the environmental performance of the steel industry has won a major international award.
Steel Sustainability Australia (SSA) received the World Steel constructsteel award at a ceremony in London on October 26, placing an Australian-built initiative among the best in the global steel community.
SSA manager Melinda Coles accepted the honour and said the recognition highlighted the scheme’s potential to drive meaningful sustainability change across the steel supply chain.
She said SSA addresses environmental, social and governance (ESG) impacts at every stage of production and supply.
“By extending sustainability certification beyond crude steel mills to downstream suppliers and manufacturing sites, the scheme helps ensure that steel products used in our infrastructure and built environments are sourced and manufactured by sustainability-certified businesses throughout the supply chain,” said Coles.
The ASI developed the scheme to help the steel industry improve its sustainability performance.
In her acceptance speech on behalf of the SSA team, Coles thanked ASI national sustainability advisor Jerusha Beresford, former senior advisor on sustainability Michael Dawson, and manufacturing advisor David Varcoe for their leadership and technical expertise in developing the scheme.
She also acknowledged the Green Building Council of Australia, InfraBuild and BlueScope for their valuable guidance throughout its development, as well as Clare Broadbent and the team at constructsteel for the award.
Australia’s success in London did not stop with SSA. The country took home two of the three international constructsteel awards, with ASI member Rondo Building Services receiving the Innovation of the Year award for its Western Sydney International Airport ceiling project.
The same project also won the ASI Steel Excellence Award for NSW.
The remaining award, Best Project of the Year, went to the United Kingdom’s Hill Dickinson Stadium project.
ASI chief executive Mark Cain said the award was a great milestone in the collective efforts of the ASI and the local steel community to build a more sustainable steel industry.
He said the ASI had proved a strong launchpad for international success, with five ASI Steel Excellence Award and Sustainability Award winners going on to win global awards in recent years.
Alongside SSA and the Western Sydney Airport project in 2026, the St Marys Integrated Project Office, delivered by Robert Bird Group, won in 2025 for excellence in sustainability.
Sydney Modern Australia, delivered by Arup, won best project of the year in 2024.
In 2023, Monash University and Coates took out Innovation of the Year with the Quadshore Temporary Propping System.
Cain said the strength of the international field made this year’s result especially notable.
“When you see the competition that our entries from Australia were up against, it makes this year’s achievement of winning two of the three categories even more impressive,” said Cain.
