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When a building needs to be demolished, it’s often done quite roughly with large machines. But that won’t be the case in the future, when demolition will be done more selectively so that as many materials as possible can be reused. This is a vision of the future that a major new research project involving researchers from Aarhus University and Lund University in Sweden will look into.
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“Overall, the aim of the project is to get the entire construction industry to think much more reusable and much more regenerative. We don’t yet have much experience with extracting building materials from existing buildings for reuse in new ones,” says Lars Vabbersgaard Andersen, professor at the Department of Building and Building Design at Aarhus University, in a press release.
Digital mapping for better recycling
As part of the project, researchers will develop so-called digital twins of existing buildings. A digital twin is a digital mapping of the building, which is already known from the construction of new buildings. Now the same method will be applied to demolition and remodeling, making it easier to get an overview of materials that can be recycled.
“Demolition today typically involves the use of bulldozers, but doing a selective and gentle demolition of a building where you get the right things out in the right order to ensure both quality and safety is a significant issue,” says Lars Vabbersgaard Andersen.
The construction industry generates around 40% of society’s total waste. The aim of the research project is to give the industry better opportunities to increase recycling and reduce waste. The project has a budget of DKK 28.4 million and is funded by a number of foundations, industry organizations and companies.
