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


September 10, 2025

Paul Jonker-Hoffrén, Tampere University Reuse of prefabricated concrete elements requires technical solutions and specialist knowledge of structural engineers and deconstruction firms, among others. In the ReCreate project, we have shown that on a technical level, reuse is entirely feasible. For this, we have developed knowledge and practices that can be scaled up. However, scaling up […]

September 8, 2025

The international conference Circularity in the Built Environment (CiBEn 2025) will take place in Tampere, Finland, from 16–18 September, bringing together leading voices in research, policy, and practice around circular construction. ReCreate will have a strong presence throughout the programme, with more than 20 presentations spanning across themes such as deconstruction, quality management, design, logistics, […]

August 29, 2025

Jakob Fischer, Brandenburg University of Technology The pilot project ‘Youth Centre at Sternentor’ in Hohenmölsen is entering the next important phase of the Recreate project. The construction project with dismantled and reusable concrete elements, initiated by the mayor Andy Haugk (town of Hohenmölsen, state of  Saxony-Anhalt), designed by architect Christoph Henschel and scientifically supervised and […]



Events


January 31, 2025

16-18 September 2025 Tampere Hall congress centre Tampere, Finland (street address Yliopistonkatu 55) About the conference The 2nd International Conference on Circularity in the Built Environment (CiBEn) brings together pioneering researchers from all over Europe and beyond to share knowledge on the state-of-the-art on circular construction. Organised in collaboration between Tampere University (Finland), TU Delft […]


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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