Repetitive Utilization of Structural Elements

The project addresses the potential and challenges currently facing the re-use of elements from existing buildings and design for re-use in new buildings in order to support sustainable growth by reducing C&D waste, pollution, natural resources consumption, and the costs of manufacturing such elements. The project has a particular focus on larger structural elements in commercial, industrial and residential buildings (columns, beams, wall panels, and floor and roof elements) connected by mechanical joints and made for instance from steel, precast concrete, engineered timber (e.g. CLT, LVL, glulam) or timber-based materials. Many of these elements are currently difficult to re-use in new buildings; recycling, other recovery means or disposal thus create a considerable environmental burden. Re-use is of course different from recycling itself for which the elements will not be transformed (repaired, repainted, recoated) but sent to the recycling facility.

ReUSE was jointly funded project by the Finnish Ministry of Environment, VTT, Tampere University of Technology, Finnish Wood Research and Ekokem.