Toolkits to Enable Reuse
Supporting Reuse
This collection of case studies, guidance and tools is designed to help the building industry tackle global challenges at every stage of a project´s lifespan.
https://ce-toolkit.dhub.arup.com/
This interactive guidance is a list of 4 higher level strategies under which sit 11 sub-strategies and then a number of associated actions that could be implemented to achieve the strategies. https://ce-toolkit.dhub.arup.com/strategies
- Build nothing
- Build for long-term use
- Build efficiently
- Build with the right resources
Arup’s toolkit hub also includes a comprehensive list of tools available globally from a diverse group of organisations – from Madaster’s online registry for materials and products to the EU LEVEL(S) framework that provides a robust approach to measure and support improvement from design to end of life.
Digital Enablers are vital for a successful transition to a more circular economy. The Circular Tech Map is one way of sharing and supporting the innovative software that is leading the way in circularity enablement. The map uses the “R Strategies” as a way to categorise the tech included in this prototype.
What is “circular tech”? Every discussion of circularity and the circular economy will mention “digital enablers”, however there is no standard definition of what this means.
For this version of the Circular Tech map, a sample of tech that meets the following criteria is being included – Must have Software at the core and Must enable circularity in others.
Achieving a circular economy requires a fundamental systems-level change in our economy. All levels of government, industry, and civil society need to rally behind the common goal to shift from our current extractive and wasteful linear economy towards a regenerative, circular one. The report uses the ‘Three Horizons framework’ as a way of mapping how a shift could take place from the established patterns of the first horizon (business-as-usual) to the beginning of new patterns and emerging future in the third horizon.
Eight industry enablers have been identified, shown in the inner circle below. These provide ways to drive the shift from business-as-usual toward a mindset of doing more good rather than just doing less bad, considering the full life cycle of buildings and starting to do more to fully reflect the potential triple bottom line (social, environmental, economic) impacts.
https://ukgbc.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Circular-Economy-System-Enablers-Report.pdf
Materials going into a building: Supporting reuse through best practice design & specification
Regenerate is a freely available tool, created by The University of Sheffield to instil circular economic principles within building designs and provoke meaningful discussion across the construction sector.
In line with the increasing realisation of its importance in tackling climate change, regenerate’s primary aim is to provide a mechanism by which members of the construction industry are able to engage with the circular economy. The tool offers a measure of the circularity of construction projects, addressing to the as-yet-unanswerable question: “how circular is my building?”. Within regenerate developments are broken up into a number of build zones, with each zone representing areas with a unique development type (new build/refurbishment), building use, and structural form combination.
Within each zone, the development is broken down further into building layers. As well as for ease of use, this is consistent with the argument put forward by Brand (1997) that, if properly conceived, buildings should comprise several layers of built components that are changed at different rates. This notion of replacement rates is vital in achieving circular design, with each layer representing key elements of a building, namely: site, structure, skin, services, space and stuff.
As a result of its development in close consideration of Greater London Authority (GLA) guidance, regenerate can also be used in the preparation of circular economy statements. This results from its provision of achievable and evidencable circularity credits (CC’s) and easy-to-complete form-style versions of commonly required documentation (e.g. GLA table 1/2, Bill of Materials and Recycled Materials).
This guidance is designed to enable construction clients to include more ambitious circular design and construction principles in project briefs for non-domestic built assets. This is achieved by addressing the common commercial obstacles that clients may encounter, and providing practical support and evidence to assist them in setting clear circular objectives for their construction projects. The guidance also aims to ensure that the construction supply chain can effectively deliver circular economy goals and that budget, project management, and timescale risks are all minimised and mitigated. This includes advice on how to specify circular economy principles in the project brief:
A Reuse (including refurbish and repurpose)
B Design buildings for optimisation (longevity, flexibility, adaptability, disassembly and recoverability)
- Standardisation or modularisation
- Servitisation and leasing
E Design and construct responsibly
https://ukgbc.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Circular-Economy-Report.pdf
This general guidance is firmly focused on the idea of practical reuse, and should be read in conjunction with other guidance on sustainable design, deconstruction and recycling where necessary to provide an overall design framework. The details provided have been fully costed, tested and subjected to a Defects Liability insurance assessment. They are offered as viable alternatives to standard details, and illustrate the possibilities that exist for re-use. It simply remains for you, the reader, to apply them appropriately in the context of your next project…
The report summarises design concepts for deconstruction and reuse, that could be used in modern timber buildings. It outlines that the feasibility as well as the reuse potential depends on the scale of reclaimed components.
Various examples for DfDR in buildings with the accompanying design strategies are presented. The buildings in the examples are often designed to be in one place for a limited timeframe and can be deconstructed and re-erected elsewhere without replacement of components. KKey-features often include modularity of components, reversible connections, adaptability of the floor-plan and circular procurement. Even though it is evidently possible, the structural reuse of timber is not a wide-spread approach to date. Barriers to the use of reclaimed structural components are mainly a lack in demand for salvaged materials, but also prohibitive building regulations and the lack of design standards. Demolition practices play a crucial role as well and need to be considered in the design of buildings, to avoid damage to the components.
https://www.infuturewood.info/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/InFutURe-Wood-Report-D2.1f.pdf
Materials Coming Out of a Building: Supporting reuse through best practice deconstruction and reclamation
FCRBE a series of tools and methods to implement reuse actions in their projects for contracting authorities, building developers, architects and other building professionals:
- Reclamation audit method – How to identify reusable materials in a building scheduled for demolition
- Guidebook on procurement strategies – How to integrate reuse ambitions in the tendering procedures of construction and renovation projects
- Material sheets – 36 sheets covering a wide range of materials: how to reclaim and reuse them, what are their known characteristics, how available are they on the market, what are their environmental benefits
- Practical guides for contractors – Six guides on reuse for specialised trades: general contractors, finishing companies, woodworkers, roofers, demolishers and infrastructure contractors
- Reuse Objectives – Method to set, measure and report on reuse objectives in tenders, project implementation and public policies.
- Insurance for reused building materials – A selection of 11 case studies which successfully dealt with insurance issues for reused building materials.
- Final activity report – an overview of all the work carried out over the 5 years of the project
Steel is one of the most widely used and resource intensive materials used in construction. Although commonly recycled at end of life, the reuse of steel is minimal despite the apparent environmental, carbon and circular economy benefits.
The purpose of the toolkit is to provide major supply chain stakeholders involved in steel reuse, ranging from demolition contractors to clients, with guidance, business considerations, case studies and more, to facilitate new market entrants and achieve a greater supply of reused steel in the construction industry.
In the UK, Grosvenor is seeking to build confidence in supply and receiving materials on site through enhancing knowledge and creating a network of progressive companies willing to trial new approaches. In 2021, they canvassed 120 built environment professionals representing the full lifecycle of a building to find out more about the prevalence of, and barriers to, accelerating material re-use. A series of guides created by our partners, HETA, ARUP, Orms and Elliott Wood address the major barriers to re-use, one of which is the ‘Deconstructing buildings for circular use’ as featured below. https://grosvenor.com/materialreuse
This guide aims to unlock the unrealised value of building materials within existing and occupied buildings to create these Reuse opportunities. The purpose is to contribute to make Reuse the norm for the construction industry to address the global climate crisis. It focuses on determining structural materials behind finishes, the main challenge when establishing the structure of existing and occupied buildings. A methodology to assess the Reuse potential of building materials is presented consisting of these four streams of work:
1 – Data collection to establish the building layout.
2 – Non-destructive investigations to determine the structure behind the finishes.
3 – Inventory and structural sketches of the individual elements of the structure.
4 – Evaluation of Reuse potential of steel, timber, masonry, and concrete elements.
All of which is mapped against the RIBA Plan of Work 2020 indicating the proposed stage at which the new steps are to be undertaken. https://online.flippingbook.com/view/915371497/
This How-to Guide takes project teams, working on demolition, deconstruction, refurbishment or fit out projects, through the process, roles and responsibilities for maximising reuse and reclaiming materials. This guide provides an understanding of what information is required, whom to involve and at which point in the programme.
- How to create a product and material inventory to support reuse within an existing project
- How to reuse materials and products from another project
- How to send materials and products offsite for reuse on another project
https://ukgbc.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/how-to-guide-reuse.pdf