Reuse Material

Circular construction

The building industry is the most resource-intensive sector in all industrialised countries, producing 80 % of all generated waste in Switzerland and more than a third of global greenhouse gas emissions due to its linear extract-use-waste model. To remediate this detrimental condition worldwide, a transition to a circular model, in which we reuse building materials, is urgently needed.

Benefits of reuse

Reusing materials is a way to reduce resource depletion, greenhouse gas emissions and waste generation. While we have heard a lot about “recycling” (e.g. melting steel), the “reuse” of building materials usually demands less energy and thus emissions (e.g., keeping the steel beam as it is) and gives value to the labour that went into making building components (e.g., reusing an entire beam).

Challenges of reuse & digital solutions

Due to rapid urbanisation and a fragmented supply chain in the construction sector, buildings are getting demolished, rather than deconstructed, preventing the reuse of materials. Careful planning and technical knowledge are needed to schedule the safe removal of materials, to separate materials without damaging them, and to mark materials for tracking and tracing. There is not yet a feasible circular design and management strategy that can be broadly applied in construction practice. Digitalisation can fill this gap