Reusing precast concrete for a circular economy

International ReCreate project aims to discover how used concrete elements can be deconstructed without damaging them to be reused in new buildings – and turn the process into a profitable business. The four-year project has received €12.5 million of funding under the EU’s Horizon 2020 programme.





Activities


November 22, 2024

Jakob Fischer, Brandenburg University of Technology As Europe strives to meet its sustainability targets, the construction industry’s environmental impact is under increasing scrutiny. The sector is responsible for a significant portion of Europe’s resource consumption and waste generation. A key solution lies in evaluating building stock for its potential to contribute to circular economy practices, […]

October 18, 2024

Arnaldur Bragi Jakobsson Second Wind explores the potential of reusing pre-cast concrete elements from an obsolete apartment building in Helsingborg, Skåne County, Sweden. As part of the ReCreate initiative, which encourages the sustainable repurposing of concrete components, I collaborated with Helsingborgshem, the city’s municipal housing company, to develop a new rowhouse typology of approximately 100 […]

September 27, 2024

Written by Linnea Harala & Lauri Alkki The ReCreate pilot projects in Finland, Sweden, Germany and the Netherlands highlight diverse approaches to implementing concrete element reuse, each influenced by unique building types, contexts and organizational structures. An initial analysis by ReCreate’s business research work package (WP7) has revealed distinct patterns in these approaches, primarily categorized […]



Events


September 6, 2024

ReCreate representatives from Sweden, Erik Stenberg and Helena Westerlind, project coordinator from Finland, Satu Huuhka, and Eetu Lehmusvaara (TAU) are preparing to exhibit the project in the Tallin Architecture Biennale 2024. Description taken from the official website of the exhibition: “7th Tallinn Architecture Biennale (TAB) will be titled “RESOURCES FOR A FUTURE” and curated by […]


About us

ReCreate

The aim of this project is to improve the technical and economic viability of deconstruction and reuse of precast concrete structures that have not been designed for deconstruction. ReCreate pushes towards circular construction by investigating the systemic changes needed in the whole ecosystems of construction and demolition.

More about us



Most used construction material

Concrete is the most used construction material globally and in the EU. It is also a highly carbon-intensive material.

Bridge the knowledge gaps

Hindering the deconstruction and reuse from reaching maturity as a socio-technological process by learning from innovative pilots.

Importance of ReCreate

The concept of ReCreate is to work with industry partners and buildings owners in four pilots (located in DE, FI, SE, NL)



About Project

Project goals


ReCreate aims to bridge the knowledge gaps hindering the approach from reaching maturity as a socio-technical process by using the innovative pilots to explore, develop and demonstrate various national value chains, business models, legislation obstacles (e.g. building vs. waste legislation), as well as diverse building stocks with different kind of representative construction technologies, building types and sizes, and ownership structures.






Innovate and develop novel technological solutions for deconstruction and reuse



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EU FUNDING

“This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 958200”.

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