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November 2018
Author:Elma DurmisevicUIA Expert
The Super Circular Estate project Journal N° 1
Project led by the city of Kerkrade
CIRCULARECONOMY
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The Super Circular Estate project
The Super Circular Estate (SCE) project addresses the urgent social and environmental challenge of both material and social circularity.
Faced with emerging trend in shrinking of the population and possible appearance of underperforming/abandoned areas due to a demographic change in Region of Parkstad,the Super Circular Estate project aims to reverse the conventional approach of urban transformation (by demolition and relocation of residents) into a circular approach, aiming at closing material circles within own restructuring area while reusing physical and social values and using these as social and physical building blocks for the new construction. The project explores the potential of CIRCULAR MANAGEMENT for SOCIAL HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS including bought material and social circularity.
At the times that many European countries are investigating potential models for transition towards circular economy and its implementation in the built
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environment, the Super Circular Estate project, focuses on the biggest urban transformation challenge in the Netherlands. Region of Parkstad together with Housing corporation HeemWonen, the city of Kerkrade and with support of construction industry and knowledge institutions, is working on delivering a circular neighborhood which will be transformed and rebuilt on principles of exploiting existing buildings as bank of materials for the new buildings and circular neighborhood where old residents become new residents. This unique project operates on front lines of the world’s quest towards circular buildings and in search for the answers about the reuse potential of the existing buildings, materials and their socio-economic and environmental added value in new construction project. In search of the answers, the Super Circular Estate project aims at deconstructing the existing 10 story housing block built in 1968 and using 75% -100% of its material to construct four, and later potentially, sixteen houses in the same neighborhood.
Traditionally demolition of buildings result into (i) loss of social cohesion, (ii) loss of its residents (iii) low (or no) market value of recovered materials, (iv) as well as high environmental costs manifested through the demolition waste, lost embodied carbon in materials, and embodied carbon in new row materials.
If experiment in Kerkrade succeeds in achieving its ambitions it would set-up new blueprint and open new horizons for circular transformation, upgrading and exploitation of the existing built environment across Europe.
As such Super Circular Estate has at its core two key innovation pillars:
1. Technical innovation: exploring material circularity and their numerous reuse options in new construction. Besides closing of material loops, closing of water streams within the neighborhood is also addressed through this project
2. Social innovation: exploring new concepts of participative communities and shared economy (through shared products, facilities and services) that may strengthen connectivity, cultural identity of the neighborhood and its social cohesion
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Partnership:
• Municipality of Kerkrade
• Brunssum municipality
• Landgraaf municipality
• Stadsregio Parkstad Limburg – regional authority
• VolkerWessels Construction – construction company
• Real Estate Development South and Dusseldorp Infra – construction company
• Water Board Company Limburg – water management infrastructure provider
• Limburg Drinking Water Company – water management infrastructure provider
• IBA Parkstad B.V – higher education and research institute
• Zuyd University of Applied Sciences - higher education and research institute
• HeemWonen – social housing corporation
• Association of Demolition Contractors (VERAS) – advocacy organisation
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Table of Contents
1. ExecutiveSummary 6
2. The Context 8
2.1 Circular economy - Global level 8
2.2 EU level 9
2.3 Dutch context 9
2.4 ConstructionwastestreamsintheNetherlands 11
2.5 CompositionofthehousingstockinTheNetherlands 12
2.6 SocialcontextintheRegionofParkstad 14
3. SuperCircularEstateǀGoals 15
3.1 Stepstotake 16
4. Project progress and learning point 17
5. Material passports 19
6. Harvestingmaterialsforconstructionoffourhouses 21
7. MultidisciplinaryTeamworkasmaindriverofinnovation 23
8. Social Impact 24
9. Challengesahead 26
Acknowledgment 29
References 30
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1. ExecutiveSummary
Figure1: Reuse options of materials Super Circular Estate
Itisthroughbuildingsandcitiesthatmankindisincreasinglychangingtheenvironmentalbalanceof the planet, through which various stocksand flows of environmental capital are shaped(Durmisevic 2011)–.The physical impact of theincreasingbuildingmasshasbecomeundeniable.In Europe, the building sector accounts for38% of the totalwaste production, 40% of thecarbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and 50% of allnatural resources are used within construction(EIB,2015).
There is worldwide consensus that the wayforward is through transformation of linearconsumption model of natural resources intoacircular one. The Dutch government wentfurtherinspecifyingitsnationalgoaltodevelopacircular economy in the Netherlands by 2050
and to realize an objective of a50% reductionin theuseofprimary rawmaterialsby2030bydesigning products and buildings in such awaythattheycanbereusedwithaminimumlossofvalue and without harmful emissions enteringthe environment.
Despite the fact thatmany European countrieshave adopted similar environmental goals andstrategiesnotmuchprogress hasbeendone inimplementing circular economy principles intoconstruction sector, simply because there aremany unknowns related to the reuse potentialand performance of construction materials indifferentreusescenarios.
In addition, 50% of investments in buildingconstruction in the Netherlands are spent onpartialdemolitionandadaptationoftheexisting
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buildings and 42% of new construction is dueto the replacement of demolished buildingswhich do not have capacity to be modified toaccommodatenewneeds(PBL,2013).
Inorder tobridge thegapsbetween linearandcircular construction, it has become crucialto understand the capacities of buildings totransform anegative environmental impact toapositive one, e.g. tons of degraded materialsandCO2 emissions.
Super Circular Estate project is addressing thischallenge and is focusing on understandingmulti-layered capacity of existing buildingstructure and its potential to reverse processof material degradation during transformationprojecttowardshighvaluerecoveryandreuseofmaterials.Theaimoftheprojectistoinvestigate,test and potentially upscale tools andmethodsthat could enable the construction industry topreserveavalueofthebuildingmaterialswithintheexistingbuildingstockandpotentiallycreateanew value for the society in the future. Theobjective is to build new buildings by reusing100%localmaterialswhichhavebeenrecoveredfrom the underperforming building block.Besidescircularapproachtouseofmaterials,theprojectisfocusedonsocialaspectsimpactedbycircular transformation projects. The aim hereis to get back at least 20% of old inhabitantsaftertransformationandurbanrestructuring,topreserve social cohesion of the neighborhood,butalso tocreateasharedspacesasworkshopspace, washing andmeeting spaces all createdwith local retrievedmaterials. Besidesmaterialandsocialcircularityathirdaspectofthiscircularproject is implementation of awater recyclingsystem which accommodates shared facilitieswithreusedwater.
During the first year of the project importantcircular building features have been testedin order to set up aframework for theimplementationstage.Theprimarilyfocuswason:Testingdeconstructiontechnics,testingmaterialcomposition of building, testing reusability ofbuilding components andmaterials, developingthe framework for registrationofmaterials andtrackandtracesystemanddevelopingandtestingtheframeworkforresident’sparticipation.Theseactivities have created the basis for the nextphase of experiment which will deal with theimplementation of techniques and tools thathavebeenshapedinpreviousmonths.
ThisjournalwillhighlightthecontextoftheSCEprojectandkeyelementsoftheframeworkthatwillenablematerialandsocialcircularityduringthenextprojectstages.
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2. The Context
2.1 Circulareconomy-GloballevelTheneedtopreservethelivingconditionsontheplanetforfuturegenerationsisoneofthegreatestchallengesthathumankindaddressestodayandrepresentsakeychallengeinmeetingtheUnitedNationsSustainableDevelopmentGoals(SDG’s).AccordingtotheUN,theincreasingconsumptionbrought on by rapid growth of population and
economicprosperity,meansthatinthelastfourdecades,theamountofextractedrawmaterialshasbeentripledandearth’sresourcestosupporthumanlivingandprosperitywillbecompromisedifmoreeffectiveandcircularpatterns inuseofresourcesarenotimplemented.(figure2)
The exponential increase in population andcontemporaneous increase in standardof livingwillmean that the demand for essential goodsandserviceswill increaseat leastby factor twoin the next few decades (Natalis Dias, TUDelft2007). Numerous raw consumption modelspredictthatthistrendinanlinearsystemofrawmaterialexploitationwillrequiremultipleplanets
to provide the necessary resources to sustaingrowingpopulationanditsprosperity.
The way forward is through transformation oflinear consumptionmodel of natural resourcesinto acircular one and through transition fromlinear to circular economy. A circular economy is an economic system where products and
Figure2: Worldwide resource extraction in billions of tons, 1900-2005,
(UNEP IRP, 2017)
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services are traded in closed loops or ‘cycles’.Acircular economy is characterized as aneconomywhich is regenerative by design,withthe aim to retain asmuch value as possible ofproducts, parts andmaterials. This means thattheaimshouldbetocreateasystemthatallowsfor the long life, optimal reuse, refurbishment,remanufacturing and recycling of products andmaterials (Kraaijenhagen, Van Oppen & Bocken.2016,EllenMacArthurFoundation,2016).
Thischallengewillrequireintroductionofchangein abroad sense and full implementation oftechnological,socialandsysteminnovations.
Inorder tomake towards this systemicchange,UN reached agreement in 2015 defining sevenSustainable Development Goals (SDG’s)inwhichcirculareconomyisaddressedindifferentways.
UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (UN2015):
• Promotecontinuing,inclusiveandsustainableeconomic growth, full and productiveemployment and decent work for everyone(e.g., by decoupling economic growth fromenvironmentaldegradation);
• Promote sustainable industrialization andinnovation (e.g., by adapting industries inordertomakethemsustainable,withafocusongreaterefficiency in theuseof resourcesand cleaner and environment-friendlytechnologiesandindustrialprocesses);
• Makecitiesandhumansettlementsinclusive,safe, resilient, and sustainable (e.g., throughinclusiveandsustainableurbandevelopmentand building capacity for participative,integratedandsustainableplanning);
• Ensure sustainable production andconsumption(e.g.,reducingglobalfoodwasteby half, through sustainable governmentassignmentsandsustainabilityeducation);
• Conserve and make sustainable use of theoceans, the seas, and maritime resources(e.g.,bypreventingmarinelitter);
• Protect biodiversity and ecosystems (e.g. byintegratingecosystemandbiodiversityvaluesinto national and local planning and intodevelopmentprocesses).
2.2 EU levelAttheEuropeanlevel,theEuropeanCommissionsets out an action plan and apackage oflegislativeproposals in 2015 in “EU actionplanfortheCircularEconomy”,tomovefrom“waste”to “reuse” and to push the circular economyforward towards closing the loop ( EuropeanCommission, Closing the loop– An EU action
planfortheCircularEconomy,2015).TheCircularEconomy package of the Commission and theCouncil’s conclusions, which were specified inthe Environmental Council meeting of 20 June2016,formanambitiousEuropeanpolicyagendatowardscirculareconomythatmanyEUcountriesdecidedtofollow.
2.3 Dutch contextTheNetherlandsiscontributingtothepreviouslymentioned UN and EU goals and, to this end,has put forward activities in the Government-wide program entitled “Wide Program for
aCircular Economy in the Netherlands by2050”. This program has been developed andpublished by the Ministry of Infrastructureand Water Management and the Ministry of
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Economic Affairs and Climate Policy, also onbehalfoftheMinistryofForeignAffairsandtheMinistry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations(Government 2016) https://www.government.nl/documents/letters/2016/09/14/government-wide-programme-for-a-circular-economy.
The figure 3 bellow represents the strategy fortransition towards circular economy defined in
Government-wide Program 2015. The schemedraws relation between the way resourcesare exploited and environmental impacts andproposes ashift from relative decoupling ofeconomicgrowthfromtheuseofnaturalresourcestoapositivecouplingbetweeneconomicgrowthandgrowthofnaturalresources.
Figure 3: Dutch strategy: From Linear to circular economy (Government-wide Program 2015)
The Dutch government specified its nationalgoal to develop acircular economy in theNetherlandsby2050andtorealizeanobjectiveof a50% reduction in the use of primary rawmaterials by 2030. This should be achievedby designing products and buildings in suchaway that theycanbe reusedwithaminimum
loss of value and without harmful emissionsentering the environment (Government-wideProgram 2015). To keep with the Europeanagreements, Dutch government set up thefollowing ambition: By 2050, the constructionindustry will be organized in such away, withrespect to the design, development, operation,
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management, and disassembly of buildings,as to ensure the sustainable construction, use,reuse, maintenance, and dismantling of theseobjects.Sustainablematerialswillbeusedinthe
constructionprocess,anddesignswillbegearedtothedynamicwishesoftheusers.(Government-wideProgram2015)
2.4 ConstructionwastestreamsintheNetherlandsDutchMinistryofInfrastructureiscollectingthedata which address individual waste streamsin construction on yearly basis. According totheir data 89% of materials coming from theconstruction sector has mineral substances(brick,concrete,ceramictiles)and11%ismetal,
wood etc. 98% of the mineral waste in theNetherlands is traditionally being down-cycledandreusedasaroadbaseaggregate.ThedatainFigure3isbeingcollectedbytheDutchMinistryof Infrastructure in which individual operatorsandwastestreamsinconstructionareaddressed.
Figure 4: CDW in The Netherlands (CBS, 2015d)
Type Sub-type 2012
TotalCDWwaste Kton 25597
Recyclablewaste Iron Kton 732
Recyclablewaste Metal Kton 164
Recyclablewaste Mixedmetal Kton 75
Recyclablewaste Glass Kton 49
Recyclablewaste Wood Kton 1322
Recyclablewaste Paper Kton 6
Recyclablewaste Plastic Kton 34
Recyclablewaste rubber Kton 0
Recyclablewaste Textilewaste Kton 0
Recyclablewaste Other Kton 0
Mineralwaste Kton 22550
Electronicwaste Kton 4
Animal-andbiodegradablewaste
Kton 427
Mixedwaste Kton 200
Sludge Kton 18
Chemicalwaste Kton 17
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The existing patterns in Construction andDemolition waste management in theNetherlandsindicatesthattheindustryhasmadegreat steps towards recycling /down cycling oftheconstructionmaterial.(PBL)
According to the Rijkswaterstaat and NationalInstitute forPublicHealthand theEnvironment(RIVM 2015), the reuse of (commercial andnonresidential buildings) C&NRB constructionand demolition waste in the Netherlands isalready widespread (>95%), even though in
manycasesmaterialsarenotreusedatthesameor higher level. The reuse rather involves, forexample,constructionrubblebeingprocessedtogranulatetobeusedasafoundationmaterialinSoilandCivilengineering(S&CE)sector.TheneedforsuchfoundationmaterialintheS&CEsectorisexpectedtodecrease,asthissectorincreasinglytendstouseresidualmaterialfromothersources.This“saturation”inS&CEgeneratesanincentivefordevelopingmorecircularusesforconstructionmaterialsintheC&NRBsector.
Figure 5: Typical reuse option of building materials, (Rijkswaterstaat and National Institute for Public Health and the Environment, RIVM 2015)
The building blocks of Super Circular Estateproject in Kerkrade represent the averagematerial composition of buildings and theirwaste streams now. Without the UIA project,Super Circular state buildings would end up in
conventionalwastestreamsinTheNetherlands.As presented in previous figures these wastestreams are organized around down-cycling ofbuildingmaterialsatthemoment.
2.5 CompositionofthehousingstockinTheNetherlandsIntheperiodfrom1900to2011about92%(CBS,2016)ofthepresentbuildingstockhasbeenbuiltintheNetherlands.
By the end of Second World War 12% ofresidential buildings were social housing units.Form1945-1975theproportionofsocialhousinggrew to 41% and by early 1990 the share hadreached 44% (Pieter Boelhower, 2003, Social
HousingFinanceintheNetherlands).Differencebetweensocialandprivatehousingisevenbigger,on the social housing side, in big Dutch cities.Forexample, inAmsterdamca.30%ofhousingisprivatelyownedandca.70%isrentalhousingmanly developed by housing corporations Thepost war reconstruction that took place from1945until1975wasdominatedbyindustrialized
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housing systems developed after the secondworld war to answer urgent need for housing,focusing on mass standardization. Throughoutthis period dominant portion of ca. 36% ofnowadayshousingstock in theNetherlandshasbeen produced. The peak in construction wasreachedbetween1965and1975 (seediagram,figure6)CBS Bouwhulpgroep, 2015.Thismakes
Super Circular Estate representative for thetypology andmethods of construction for theperiod when major percentage of the exitinghousing stock in the Netherlands has beenformed.OnlyintheregionoftheParkstad1250of the same social housing apartments havebeen registered.
Figure6:HousingstockgrowthintheNetherlands(1900-2015)CBS2015)
Figure 6: Housing stock growth in the Netherlands ( 1900-2015) CBS 2015)
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2.6 SocialcontextintheRegionofParkstad
Once wealthy Region, the Region of Parkstad(flourishing on the exploitation of coal mines)hasfaceditstransformationbyclosingofmines(between1968-1974)whichhassetupatrendofeconomic decline and shrinking of population.Super Circular Estate project is placed in
Kerkrade with prediction of 10% shrinkage ofthepopulationincoming10years.(PCkwadraat2017).Inthenext30years,theParkstadLimburgregion’s population will shrink by 27% dueto population ageing and young generationmoving to bigger cities. This implies that lesshousing accommodation will be demanded inthe following decades. High-rise apartmentbuildings,whichweremainlybuilt inthe1960’sand1970’s,whenhousingshortagewasaprimaryissue, no longer satisfies the requirements andinhabitants’needsandare listed fordemolition.Demolitionofbuildingstraditionallyhasnegativeimpactonbothsocialandmaterial level,whichis doubling down the shrinking population anddegradationofmaterials (BothbeingaddressedbytheUIAproject).
Figure 7: Super Circular Estate project area, Kerkrade
Figure 8: Demographic forecast for the region of Parkstad
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3. SuperCircularEstateǀGoals
Transformingweaknessintostrength
Three vacant high-rise apartment buildings intheproject-area in theCityofKerkradecontainvaluable materials, qualities and former socialstructures. Demolition of these buildings willirreversibly impair these values. The objectiveoftheSuperCircularEstateistocircularlyreusethese values within the project area whilstboostingthelocaleconomyandcreatingahigh-quality and desirable urban environment. Theformer social structures will be recovered byactively stimulating former inhabitants to takeresidence in the area again. The proposedInnovative Urban Action is to experiment withnewcirculareconomyprocessesaimedat100%reusingandrecyclingofmaterialsacquiredfromtheproject-areainKerkrade.
Altogether, considering this unique situationand potential knowledge coming from thecircular transformation, Super Circular Estateproposes to turn weakness into strengths. Itproposes aconcept of Shrinking regions asRegion of Parkstad to become “Material bankfor the Netherlands”. It builds on front-runnerdevelopments to collect&map information onavailability of reclaimed building products andcontributes with quality confirmation data ondigitalcircularbuildingplatform.
The project serves as abest examplefor approximately 1250 similar housingaccommodationsintheParkstadLimburgregion.However,resultscanbeimplementedinamuchbroader area since the housing block of SuperCircularEstateisrepresentativeforthemethodsof the construction of the housing in the
boomingconstructionperiodintheNetherlands.The building blocks of Super Circular Estate inKerkradearerepresentativeofthehousingstockin the Netherlands built in the postwar periodform 1945-1975. 36% of nowadays housingbuilding stock has been constructed duringthisperiod.
At the same time targeted building blocks ofSuperCircularEstateproject(reinforcedconcretehigh-risebuildings(tunnelformworktechnology))represent typical material composition whichformstodayswastestreamsintheNetherlands.
Fromthesocialcircularitypointofviewtheaimis to reinforce social cohesion by transformingpartly empty building block into anew groundbasedhomesandbringoldresidencein.
The strategic objective of the Super CircularEstate is to contribute to asustainable, circulareconomy throughmanagement of smart urbantransformation (as an answer to shrinking) inParkstad Limburg NL, by creating high quality,urban environment and affordable housingopportunitiesbasedonbreakthroughinnovativecircular material and social solutions in thehousingsector.
Project ambition is to achieve theseobjectivesthrough:
• keeping the value of the buildings, systems,productsandsocialtiesbyintroducingcirculareconomy principles and methodologiesinto the everyday decision making andmanagementofsocialhousingassociation
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• supporting industry and policy makers withhard-coreevidenceoncircularreconstructionandmaterialharvestingand
• design,experimentandevaluate100%reuseand recycle practices in demolition projectsfor reinforced concrete high-rise buildings(tunnelformworktechnology).
The Hierarchy of the material flow in SCE isfollowing theprincipalsdefined infigure9.Theaim is to favorReusefirst thanRefurbishment/Remanufacture and only as the lastoptionRecycling.
Super Circular Estate’s innovation aim is torevolutionize management of social housingassociations towards sustainable, resourceefficient decision making, delivery modelsandprocesses.
3.1StepstotakeIn order to achieve project objectives, thefollowingmilestoneshavebeendefined:
• Finalize Expo building built of 100% reusedmaterials and components, as afirst testcase prior toUIA projectwith support fromIBAParkstad.
• ImplementKnowledgefromtheexpobuildinginto developing and construction of fourtesthousesaspartoftheUIASuperCircularEstateproject.
• Collect feedback from the residents of4experimentalhomes.Allowinhabitantsfromtheneighborhoodtosleepinafewnightsandprovide feedback. Rent the 4 experimentalhomesouttooldresidents.
• Upscale two out of four test homes andconstruct twenty properties (with their ownmaterial passports) in the same area.
• Form astrong bond with the inhabitants(alumni group). Involve inhabitants in thedecision making process and invite formerinhabitants to come inhabit circular homes. At least20homeswillbeinhabitedwithformerresidents, so thatsomeof thedistrict’sDNAwillcomebackagain.
• Realise asocial plinth within asecondflat building which will be renovated andtransformed into 110 houses beyond UIAproject. Social plinth, which is apart of UIASuper Circular Estate, will be realized usingharvestedmaterialsfromthearea.Theplinthwill host shared facilities and leave space tofutureresidentstodevelopdesiredfunctions.The social plinth will offer the space tointroduce circular social functions: cookingtogether or awashingmachine room,urbanfarming,repaircafé.
Figure 9: Circular building material flow (PBL, 2016)
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4. Project progress and learning point
In the last 10 months aprogress has beenachievedon:
1. Testingthequalityofharvestedmaterialfromthe10-storyhousingblock.Thekeyquestionsinvestigated were related to the quality ofthe materials technology needed for thereparation/refurbishmentandpotentialreuseoptions of harvested materials (e.g. floorelementswhichweretakenfromthegalleriesof the building reuse as a road pavement).Testing of materials has been done by thefollowing methods: (i) visual examination,(ii)material testing of concrete and steelsamples, (iii) asbestos report, (iv)physicalinspection as to how easy it is to recovermaterialwithoutdamagesbasedontimeandequipmentneeded.
2. Investigating policy and regulation gapsrelatedtothereuseofmaterialsandfindingthewaystobridgethegaps.Withrespecttoregulations, compromising solutions had tobe foundwith themunicipality of Kerkrade,since the recoveredmaterialsdidnotfit therequirementsforthenewconstruction.Afterconsultations between the Municipality ofKerkrade and Dutch Ministry in Den Haag,ithasbeenagreedtoapply, inthiscase,theregulationsthataddresstheexistingbuildingandnotthedesignofnewbuilding.ThismeantthatthestructuralcalculationshadtocomplywithNEN8700:2011 (existingbuildings), thefloortoceilingheightisalsocompatibleonlywiththeregulationsfortheexistingbuildings.Morediscussionswilltakeplacewithrespecttotheregulationsasprojectgoesthroughthebuilding permit procedure. Especially issues
related to the health and safety impacts ofdeconstruction and construction processwithreusablematerialswillbepartoffuturediscussions.
3. Preliminary and definitive design of fourindividual houses by using harvestedmaterial from the 10-story housing blockhas been completed and application forthe building permit submitted. In comingmonths, building permit application will beprocessed by themunicipality and potentialnew questions about meeting the desiredsafety,environmentalandotherrequirementswith SCE methodology may come forward.As soonas thebuildingpermit is issued theproject partners will continue to work ontechnicaldesignincludingthepreparationforconstruction.
Designprocess itselfwas innovative.Besidesarchitect,structuralengineerandinstallationadvisorformingthecoreofdesignteam,inthecase of SCE, deconstruction contractor andgeneralcontractorwere importantmembersofdesignteamfromtheinitialdesignphase.During design of four independent houses(figure 11) the team walked through theexisting 10 story building and inspected thematerials and key dimensions in order tocreate an initial material database that willbeusedfordesignofhouses.Thesedecisionshavebeenmadejointly.
For example, in the first-place architectwasin favor of deconstructing the area aroundthe staircase because of the wide spaceattachedtothestaircase,butdeconstructioncontractor and the rest of the engineering
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teamcametotheconclusion(afterexpectingthebuildingandoldconstructionreports)thatdeconstructionofthatpartofthebuildingisnotfeasiblefromtechnicalpointofview.
The interaction between deconstructioncontractor and design team was essentialduring the preliminary and definitive designphase. Eachdesignproposalwasdependentfrom the judgment of deconstructioncontractor on its ability to recover materials withminimumdamagesandbyunderstandingthematerialpropertiesofexistingmaterials.
Preliminary and definitive design phase resulted in design of four types of ground floor houses with a garden and garage. Those are:
Houses Type A (74m2) and Type B(64m2) two bedroom and one-bedroom houses. These two types will be built with 3D modules which are directly deconstructed from the 10-story building.
Houses Type (C) 40 m2 and Type (D) 20m2 studio houses will be constructed using concrete elements as roof and façade. 10-story building has galleries and balconies, whose concrete plates will be reused in the foundation (as foundation plates). The ambition is to build the four houses with 100% of materials being reused from the 10-story building.
More detailed information about the designprocesswillbehighlightedinnextjournals.
4. Soundingboard group (NeighborhoodSteering Platform) of residents has beenformed.Theseresidentsareatthesametimetheambassadorsoftheproject.
5. Developmentofacodingsystemofmaterialsthat will enable registration of individualmaterials coming out of the building. Theregistration system in the form of materialpassport contains standardized materialproperty sets including embodied CO2
per material.
6. Disseminationofknowledgethroughnationaland international symposiumsandeventsaswellasthroughorganizedvisitstothesiteforprofessionalsanddwellers.
Major learning points are addressed in thefollowingchapters.
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5. Material passports
In order to enable closedmaterial stream loopthroughthebuiltenvironment,itisnecessarytodevelopa registration system for traceabilityofandinformationaboutmaterialscompositionofbuildings.Thiswasoneof theaspects thatwasembraced by the project team and demolisheratthebeginningoftheproject.Theregistrationsystem including track and trace QR-code hasbeen developed by demolisher Dusseldorpand implemented in the 10-story building thatis planned for deconstruction. All materialsare given a barcode and materials passport of a flat building has been created. Dusseldorp[deconstructioncompany]hascreatedamaterialsdatabase inwhich they can codematerials andadd QR-codes. Other track and trace optionsusing chip technologies have been investigatedbut have turned out to be more complex andexpensivetodevelopwithinrequiredtimeframe.
After all, as project leader at Dusseldorpstated during the interview “you can fabricateaQR-codeyourselfwithanapp,whichcanthenbescanned.Wenowhaveaverylargedatabasecontaining thewholeflat that is fully stickered.Youcanalmostseeitasastore.”Eachmaterialisloggedintothedatabase.Whenmaterial leavesthebuilding/site it isbeing loggedoff from thedatabaseandafterwardsloggedon/nestedinthenewbuildingasapartofthematerialpassportofthenewbuilding.
Basedontheexperiencesofar,theprojectteamenvisions that in the future every building willhaveitsowndatabasewithstandardizeddatasetandmaterialswillbeloggedinorloggedoutastheyarecomingandleavingthebuilding.Datasetsdeveloped so far contain information aboutmaterial properties, position in the building,functionandsize.Theaim is toequip thecodewithinformationabouttheembeddedCO2withineachmaterial.Thiswillenabletocalculaterelatedsocietal costs for the materials which will bereused.Theambitionofthehousingcooperationis toprovideall fourhouseswith suchmaterialpassportsandtoupscalethisregistrationsystemtotherestofitsbuildingstock.Developedcodingsystem helps to create a virtual material gate of the building. Accordingly, building passport of every building can be created by registering every material that passes through the virtual building gate. This will enable to know exactly what is in the building after its completion, during its use, at the end of its use life cycle as well as to register saving of materials and embodied carbon at the beginning of their second life cycle.
HousingcorporationHeemWonenwould like toimplementsuchregistrationsystemandbuildingpassportswithinthreeyears.
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Figure 10: Closing the material loop by material registration system
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6. Harvestingmaterialsforconstructionoffourhouses
Althoughtheambitionof theproject is toaimfordirect reuseofmaterialsandproducts thataredeconstructedfromthe10-storybuilding,firsttestingofmaterialandcomponentreuseindicatesthatrefurbishmentismorefeasiblethandirectreuse.Thereasonforthishastodowithhealthissue(asremovalofasbestosfromthewindowframes),changeofregulationsandperformancerequirementsasforexampleenergyperformanceofthebuilding,etc.Theprojectteamhasidentified16differentmaterialstreamswhichcanbeclassified intothefourreusecategorytypes:directreuse,reusebyremanufacturing, reuse by recycling and reuse by downcycling. The coding system mentionedaboveenablestheprojectpartnerstoidentify10-storybuildingasmaterialbankwhosecapitalwillbedistributedalongthespecifiedmaterialstreams.Forexample,Loadbearingelements,windows,doors, façadewillbeendingwithinconstructionprocessof fourhousesandotherswillendupontheinternaldatabasesandwebshopforthesecond-handmaterials.Pre-demolitionauditproducedbydeconstructioncontractorindicatedthat10-storybuildingcontains13.300tonsofmaterialoutofwhich330tonscanbemarkedasC&DW.Theambitionistofindaseconduseoptionsfortheother
Figure 11: Four UIA SCE buildings to be made of 75-100% reusable materials
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12.700tonsofmaterial.Duringpreliminaryanddefinitivedesignphase,samplesofmaterialsonthe10thfloorhavebeentestedandtheirreusepotentialhasbeeninvestigatedbyfollowingtechniques:(i)visual examination, (ii) material testing of concrete and steel samples, (iii) asbestos report,(iv)physicalinspectionastohoweasyitistorecovermaterialwithoutdamagesbasedontimeandequipmentneeded.Accordingtoaboveinvestigationamaterialpassporthasbeencreatedcontainingmaterialsfromthe10thfloor.Allmaterialsinmaterialpassportsareclassifiedintothreecategories:1 (easy to recover) to3(difficult to recover)withoutdamagingmaterials (as forexample thecasewithinsulationmaterialwhichisfixedtotheroofing,orwindowswhichcontainasbestos).Furtherapplicationsofthematerialwillbeinvestigatedduringthetechnicaldesignphaseandpreparationforconstruction.
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7. MultidisciplinaryTeamworkasmaindriverofinnovation
Successful innovation team cannot beformed by procurement process andpartnerselectionbasedontheprice,butbythe right mindset.
Super Circular Estate development processisinnovative.
Thedesignprocessisreversedfromdailyprocessbecausearchitectneedsmaterialsatthefrontthatareonly releasedat theendof thedemolition.The quality of the material is defined by therecovery process. The demolition contractordefineshowelementscanbeextractedwithoutmuch damage. The contractor needs to specifyworkneededtomakeharvestedmaterialfitfornew purposes. The structural engineer needsto proof whether structure made of reusable
materials is stable. In the design process, thearchitectisnotleadingthedesignprocessbutthesynergy in the team is leading theprocess.Themunicipality needs to accept reused materialsand structural calculations to issue buildingpermit. The process faces many unknowns insearch for smart solutions to overcome thegapsbetweenthelinearandcircularlegislation,design, constructionand liability contracts. Thiscan be achieved only by teamwork and havingtheteamplayersaroundthetablereadytostepoutof thecomfortzoneofdailyprofessionandlistenandreachtoothers.Thisiswhyallpartnersintheprojectindicatethatchoiceofpartnershipfor innovative project cannot be made byconventional procurement but by mindsetneededtocarryouttheinnovationproject.
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8. Social Impact
ThehousingcorporationandthemunicipalityofKerkradewereactiveininvolvinginhabitantsintotheprocessofurbantransformationthatwillbecarriedoutwithinSCEaimingatcreatingastrongbondwith theneighborhood throughout theprojectand let themexperiencecircular resourceuse.Thishasbeendonethroughregulareventsanddiscussionsessionsandtalksabouttheprojectprogress.Theambitionofthecityandhousingcorporationistoattractinhabitantsbacktothecommunityafterthetransformationhasbeencompleted.DuringtheinterviewswithbothprojectpartnersitbecameevidentthatresidentsareveryproudoftheprojectandthatSuperCircularEstatehascreatedanewidentityforthecommunityandthecitythateveryonecanbuildon.Theyhavemanagedtobuildstrongbondwithrepresentativesoftheresidentsthathavestartedactingasambassadorsoftheproject.
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MunicipalityofKerkradeandhousingcorporationHeemWonenorganisedmeetingswithrepresentativesof residence groups (Neighborhood Steering Platform of residents) 5 times last year. During thesemeetingsresidentswereinformedaboutthedevelopmentsintheareaandtheobjectives,planningand progress of SCE project. At the beginning of SCE areal development, residents living in directproximitytotheSCEhousingblockswereinvolvedinadecision-makingprocessregardingdemolitionsteps.Furtheron,representativesoftheresidentswereinvolvedintheprocessofarchitects’selectionwhowill design the social shared facility on the ground floor of the 10-story building thatwill berefurbished.Theywillalsobeinvolvedindesignprocessitselftogetherwithpotentialnewresidentsincomingmonths.
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9. Challenges ahead
The Super Circular Estate contributes toasustainable, low carbon, resource efficienteconomy by creating high-quality, desirableurban environment and affordable housingopportunitiesbasedonbreakthroughinnovativematerialandsocial circular solutions.Suchhighambitionsarefacedwithmanychallenges.
In order to reach the goal, the project hasanumberofchallengesahead.
FurtherdevelopmentoftheSuperCircularEstatewilladdressmanyofthesechallenges.Keyoncearespecifiedbellow:
• Testing of the technology for high valuerecovery and solving issues of liability andcertificationwhenitcomestothereuseoftheexistingmaterial.
• Collaboration between the demolisher andcontractor as the point where the workof demolisher ends and the work of thecontractorstartsisnotstrictlydefinedinsuchcircularproject.
• Regulations as to how to go about withapprovingconstructionwhichreliesonreuseofthematerialswhichwereinitiallydesignedforotherpurposesandotherregulations.
• Procurement isseenasabigchallenge inaninnovation project as Super Circular Estate.For many actions it is difficult to find evenonepartythatcandothejob.Merelyputtingthequestiontothemarketisnothelpingtheproject since the market does not yet haveanswerstomanyprojectquestions.
• Upscaling the technology and methodologytoalevelofwideapplicationisabigchallengesince itwilldependonfinancial feasibilityofthe technology and methodology, and bothare in the experimental phase.
• Social circularity by keeping residentsinformed and active and mobilizing theformerresidencewhowillbewillingtocomebackandliveincircularhomes.
Belowyoucouldfindthecross-cuttingchallengeswiththeirlevelandrelatedobservations:
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Table 1: UIA SCE challenges
Challenge Level Observations
1.Leadershipforimplementation
Low Leadershipisstrong,howeverleadershipinaninnovativeproject, which deals with systemic change, remainsa challenge. In comparison to regular project whereleadershipfocussesonmanagementoftime,costsandcontent,leadershipofSCEprocessisaboutcontinuallystimulatingpartnerstobeinnovativeandtoinvestigateoptionswhicharebeyondtheworkasusual.Thiswillneedspecialattentionthroughthewholeprocess.
2.Publicprocurement Medium Important procurement issues have been addressedalready and few issues and lessons are emerging inparticular theonce related to theconstructionphase.ConsideringthatapproachandobjectivesofSCEhavenever been addressed or tested before, there is noestablished market and knowledge that can providetailored solutions for SCE project. In order to find aconstruction/deconstruction partner for SCE, housingcorporationinvitedfourcompaniesandaskedthemtodevelopandproposeownideasandstrategiestobestmeettherequirementsofSCE.Thecompanyhasbeenchosenbasedonitsstrategyandcommitment.
3.Integratedcross-departmentalworking
Low This is a challenge, although the urban authoritymanagedtomobilisedifferentdepartmentsthroughoutthe first experimental phase, as preparation for theUIA project which has created a strong commitmentandunderstandingwithinorganisation.Howeveritwillremainchallengingasaprojectmovesfurthertowardsmorepracticallevelsofconstructionanditssafetyandsecurity.
4.Adoptingaparticipativeapproach
Low High levelsofparticipationevidentacrossstakeholdergroups.
5.Monitoringandevaluation High TheprogresshasbeenmadetoidentifyKPIofmaterialand social circularity, but monitoring and evaluationremains a significant challenge in particular aroundsocial circularity. In the early stage of the project thefocus was on developingmethodology formeasuringthetechnicalinnovationandmaterialcircularity.Settingup a measurement system for evaluation of socialcircularity and social impacts of the SCE project is achallengeastherearenostandardblueprintsthatcanbefollowedyet.Partnerswillfocusondefiningstrategyformeasuringthesocialimpactsduringthenextprojectphase.
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Challenge Level Observations
6. Financial Sustainability High The project has significant challenge in relation tothe Financial sustainability. The potential is evident,but needs to be monitored and evaluated along theprogressline.
7.Communicatingwithtargetbeneficiaries
Low Impressive communications campaign and activitiesare now in place. The project communication teamdeveloped a consistent communication strategyand communication plan around three importantmilestonesthatwereclearly illustratingtheobjectivesandsignificantpotentialsbehindtheproject.Thethreecampaignswerecovering(i)acceptanceoftheprojectproposalbyUIA;(ii)thedeconstructionprocessofthefirst3Dmoduleoutofthe10-storybuilding,(iii)openingofthefirstexpopavilionmadeof100%reusedmodulesand materials recovered from the 10-story building.These milestones have been promoted extensivelyonthesocialmedia,onregionalTVstations,websitesand newspaper. This has brought the recognition ofthe project on national level and created a positiveimageoftheproject.Asaresult,theprojectmanagersare organising frequent tour and presentation to thegroupsofprofessionalscomingtotheSCEsitefromallovertheNetherlandsandEUregion.Thishasalsoraisedtheawarenessamongtheresidence.Atthesametime,residents become proud of their neighbourhood. Theestimationisthatthesecampaignshavereachedmorethan1000peoplesofar.
8.Upscaling High The challenge here relates to financial sustainabilityrelated to the broad applicability and high adoptionlevelofthetechnologyandtoolsbeingdeveloped.Theproject partners are focused on development of fourtypes of houses first, prior to investigating potentialof thebroader implementationof thetechnologyandupscaling.
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Acknowledgment
Herewith Iwould like to thank to Tim Weijers Alderman from Kerkrade, Huub Engelen andFransDrummen(SCEprojectcoordinatorsatKerkrade),MartijnSegers(projectleaderatHeemWonen),P.(Pieter)ScheerandJurgenvandePut(deconstructioncontractor),forveryconstructivediscussionsduringtheinterviewswhichhavehighlightedtheimportanceoftheSCEfortheregionandtheRealEstate Management (in the areas with declining population), as well as the potential of ongoinginnovationswithinSCEfromsocial,technologicalandeconomicperspective.
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References
(CBS 2015) Bouwhulpgroep,Datawonen,2015
(Durmisevic 2011) E.Durmisevic,GreenDesignManifest,UniversityofTwente,2011
(EIB,2015) EconomischInstituutevoordebouw,2015
(PBL,2013) http://themasites.pbl.nl/circulaire-economie/
(PBL2016) BalanceoftheLivingEnvironment,2016
(UNEP2011) International Resource Panel, Decoupling Natural Resource Use andEnvironmentalImpactsfromEconomicGrowth,2011
UNEPIRP,2017: UNEPIRPGlobalmaterialflows,2017
(Ellen MacArthur Foundation2015):
Growth Within: aCircular Economy Vision for a Competitive Europe,2015
(Government 2016) TheMinistryofInfrastructureandtheEnvironmentandtheMinistryofEconomicAffairs,alsoonbehalfoftheMinistryofForeignAffairsandtheMinistryoftheInteriorandKingdomRelations Circulareconomy2016www.government.nl/circular-economy2016
(UN2015) UN Sustainable Development Goals, 2015
(EC 2015) European Commission, Closing the loop– An EU action plan for theCircularEconomy,2015
(PBL2016) http://themasites.pbl.nl/circulaire-economie/?lipi=urn%3Ali%3Apage%3Ad_flagship3_feed%3BytDHE1GrQcSlcDj%2BmgIw9g%3D%3D#route
(RIVM2015) Rijkswaterstaat and National Institute for Public Health and theEnvironment 2015
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Urban Innovative Actions is an Initiative ofthe EuropeanUnionUrban InnovativeActions(UIA)isanInitiativeoftheEuropeanUnionthatprovides urban areas throughout Europewithresources to test newandunproven solutionstoaddressurbanchallenges.Basedonarticle8ofERDF,theInitiativehasatotalERDFbudgetofEUR372millionfor2014-2020.Thisproject journal is apaperwaswrittenbythe UIA Permanent Secretariat. It does not havea scientificbasisor ambition. It isbasedon the readingof theapplications received inthe framework of first UIA Call for Proposalsand on the exchanges and discussions withrepresentatives of the 17 selected projects. ItaimstosharesomeoftheinitiallessonsdrawnfromthefirstCallforproposalswiththehopethat these can be a source of inspiration forurban authorities preparing proposals for thesecondCallforProposals.
ThecontentofthisjournaldoesnotreflecttheofficialopinionoftheUrbanInnovativeActionsInitiative.Responsibilityfortheinformationandviewsexpressedinthejournalliesentirelywiththeauthor.
