Design concepts for building products optimised for deconstruction

Abstract

The Innovative Design for the Future Use and Reuse of Wooden building components (InFutUReWood) project aims to answer two main questions: ¿ How easy is it to reuse timber from the current building stock, especially as a structural material? ¿ How can a review of current building practices help in future timber reuse? To address these questions the project identifies key opportunities and challenges, proposing technical solutions that aim to exploit the opportunities and reduce the challenges identified that may lessen the reuse potential of construction timber. This report is the result of the work carried out within Task 3.3 Design new products optimised for improved deconstruction potential. The aim of this task is to develop construction systems from new timber that are suitable for deconstruction at the end of first use. More precisely, it aims to improve the design and assembly approach used currently by timber product manufacturers and builders such that the reuse and cascade use viability of the timber content is increased. To achieve this, objectives are set out in the following steps: i. Initially, to identify the current manufacturing and building practices that complicate timber-salvage at building disassembly, ii. To examine alternative timber construction systems that would optimize the reuse of timber-salvage in the future The report gathers and presents design examples of low-rise residential timber construction in Sweden, the UK and Ireland. Two different timber construction approaches for residential buildings are reported here, namely, light timber-frame construction and mass-timber construction. Both building systems are manufactured offsite in panel format and are assembled and finished onsite.