Provisions for Greater Reuse of Steel Structures

2026-07-22

The PROGRESS project will provide methodologies, tools and recommendations on reusing steel-based components from existing and planned buildings. The project particularly targets the design for deconstruction and reuse of envelopes, load-bearing frames, trusses and secondary elements of single-storey buildings framed in steel. This building type has broad applicability as industrial, commercial, sports, exhibition, warehouse facilities, and shows most potential in suitability for reuse and viability for circular-economy business models. The whole life benefits of reusable single-storey steel buildings will be quantified from environmental and economic viewpoints. The outcomes will be extensively disseminated in particular among manufacturers, designers, contractors and researchers. Implementation of a circular economy involving essentially closed material loops is only starting to take the first steps. The strong industrial motivation in the project is based on the need to establish novel profitable business ecosystems and to increase competitiveness of steel products. Our consortium proposes to develop technologies and business models in the steel construction sector to address the most significant needs in the business and society. The project offers a completely new point of view on the design and execution of buildings and manufacture of construction products. They will be no longer considered as end products, but instead in the scope of circular economy as a part of continuous chain of the products ecosystem. The construction and demolition waste will became a new resource to be considered in the future buildings design.

Finland, United Kingdom, Germany, Romania, Belgium

2026-01-15