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Material efficiency is a description or metric which expresses the degree in which raw materials are consumed, incorporated, or wasted, as compared to previous measures in construction projects or physical processes. Making a usable item out of thinner stock than a prior version increases the material efficiency of the manufacturing process. Material efficiency goes hand in hand with Green building and Energy conservation, as well as any other ways of incorporating Renewable resources in the building process from start to finish.
Material efficiency can also mean the degree in which a material can handle a particular load, strain or weight upon it. Material efficiency can be achieved through using recycled materials, materials that use renewable energy, and other ways. For example, using recycled steel instead of new steel "reduces the energy produced in making the steel by 75 percent, and saves space in landfills as well." Material efficiency, "entails the pursuit of the technical strategies, business models, consumer preferences and policy instruments that would lead to a substantial reduction in the production of high-volume energy-intensive materials required to deliver human well-being. The motivations for material efficiency include reducing energy demand, reducing the emissions and other environmental impacts of industry, and increasing national resource security. With a growing population and increasing wealth, demand for material extraction and processing is likely to double in the next 40 years. The environmental impacts of the required processing will become critical."