Circular building technologies
Circular building technology represents a promising pathway for mitigating the environmental impact of the construction industry. In Switzerland, for example, the construction sector accounts for over 80% of the total annual waste generated. Innovations such as building material passports and robotic fabrication have the potential to facilitate a transition towards a circular building industry.
At SusTec, our research is at the forefront of this transformation. We are actively investigating the development of innovative construction methods that prioritize sustainability, resource efficiency, and waste reduction. As these technologies continue to evolve and gain prominence, we are closely examining their impact on the industry. Specifically, we are focusing on the dynamics of innovation, including changes in collaboration patterns and ecosystem development. We are a key partner in the Innosuisse Flagship project Swircular (Swiss Circular Construction Digital Ecosystem) and we lead the DownloadInnovation Booster programme by Innosuisse.
Key activities and findings:
- Tracking early-stage innovation ideas: We closely monitor the development of early-stage innovation concepts for circular building applications. This involves compiling essential insights from innovation projects and supplementing them with stakeholder interviews.
- Evaluating the persistence of circular practices: Through a comprehensive literature review, we assess the factors that lead to the disappearance of circular practices in construction after their initial appearance.
- Understanding the scaling of circular construction innovations: We analyze the long-term development of early-stage innovations in Switzerland to gain a deeper understanding of how circular construction innovations scale over time.
- Assessing CE value chain integration: The comprehensive assessment of both the environmental and economic dimensions of the expanded polystyrene (EPS) value chain for building insulation reveals the long-term environmental and economic favourability of EPS recycling (DownloadKulakovskaya et al., 2023)
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