ABSTRACT: Across the globe there is an imperative to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. One strategy to do this is to reduce the embodied carbon of the built environment, in conjunction with reducing in-use emissions, which is... [ view full abstract ]
ABSTRACT: Across the globe there is an imperative to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. One strategy to do this is to reduce the embodied carbon of the built environment, in conjunction with reducing in-use emissions, which is where the majority of current legislation targets. Embodied carbon reduction can be achieved through material reuse, but there is currently little supply of reusable materials. To address this, new buildings could be designed for deconstruction and material reuse to increase future reuse supplies. This paper outlines a series of case studies that have been designed for deconstruction, highlighting the perceived commercial benefits such as faster construction times and increased flexibility in-use. The case studies range from temporary structures to permanent buildings, and cross over a range of building types. The suitability of different materials is discussed, as well as the changes that will need to occur for this technique to move from the niche into mainstream construction. The rise in case studies that have been designed for deconstruction suggests that there is sufficient knowledge and commercial benefits for design for deconstruction to be integrated into an ever increasing number of new buildings. Additional research and development of new flooring systems would however assist in this approach. The paper concludes with some key lessons drawn from the case studies that could be adopted by projects seeking to incorporate this approach.
Justification of paper: This paper analyses a series of case studies that are designed for deconstruction; sharing practical insights, presenting key lessons for future projects and highlighting areas of future research. Previous research in this area focused on design guidance, with few practical insights.
Purpose: A case study approach is adopted to demonstrate the emergence of the design for deconstruction for buildings, assessing the benefits, current limitations and future potential of this strategy.
Theoretical framework: The built environment is a major consumer of energy intensive materials, with 56% of the world’s steel going into buildings or infrastructure (Allwood & Cullen, 2012), in addition to the majority of cement. The commonly adopted approach of the industry is to build and demolish, with little consideration of potential life spans and durability of whole buildings or individual components. Design for deconstruction gives additional adaptability in-use, and facilitates component reuse at end of life. Whilst there are design guides (Addis & Schouten, 2004; Morgan & Stevenson, 2005) on the topic, until recently few buildings have adopted the practice.
Results and Conclusions: A series of case studies are examined, exploring motivations for design for deconstruction. The potential benefits are quantified, in terms of the potential resources, energy and carbon saved, as well as co-benefits, such as faster construction times. An overview of lessons learnt and what alternations would need to occur in mainstream construction to incorporate this strategy are given. The potential scale for integration of this strategy and the resulting benefits are also revealed.
Implications for Tipping Points: Design for deconstruction has been researched as sustainability strategy for fifteen years, but until recently few buildings have adopted the technique. Understanding, documenting and disseminating the resulting case studies provides an evidence base to help push the construction sector towards the point where the majority of buildings are designed for deconstruction and reuse, conserving the Earth’s resources.
Key words: Design for deconstruction, embodied carbon, material reuse
