Circular economy is an economic system in which materials and products are kept in circulation for as long as possible through reuse, repair, refurbishment and recycling, instead of being discarded after use. In the construction sector this means building with materials that can be reused at the end of their service life.
Why build circularly?
The construction sector accounts for roughly 40% of total waste. Circular construction addresses this:
- Resource scarcity — primary raw materials are finite; reuse reduces demand
- CO2 reduction — manufacturing new materials consumes large amounts of energy
- Waste reduction — less demolition waste going to landfill
- Cost savings — reclaimed materials can be more affordable
Principles
- Design for disassembly — structures are designed so that components can be easily removed and reused later
- Material passport — every material is documented so that at demolition its reuse potential is known
- Reversible connections — screws instead of adhesives, click connections instead of mortar
- Renewable materials — timber, bamboo, straw instead of concrete and steel where possible
- High-value recycling — recycle materials into an equivalent product, not downcycle
Application
- Brick reuse — cleaning old bricks and relaying them
- Recycled concrete — concrete made with recycled aggregates
- Demountable facades — facade elements that are screwed rather than bonded
- Material banks — harvesting and storing materials from demolition projects
Related terms
- Sustainable building
- Cradle to cradle
- Demolition
- Reuse
- Material passport
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