VTT and the Department of Architecture at Aalto University, together with seven companies and the City of Espoo, have designed a building that will be built and dismantled at least twice. The aim of the experiment is to investigate building materials and products in real disassembly and reassembly situations.
The Circular Drifter demo house is designed for easy dismantling, allowing for disassembly and reuse with minimal waste and emissions. The size and shape of the house will also be adapted to its new use. The building will be the first in Finland to take the DfD (designed for disassembly) principle a step further: all the way to reassembly.
Each year, 41 million tonnes (38%) of all materials utilised in Finland are currently used in construction, and only a fraction of these materials are reused or recycled.
“Finland is lagging behind Europe in the circular economy of construction. If we want to achieve our carbon-neutral targets and improve our position, we need to move from talk to action," says Associate Professor Matti Kuittinen from Aalto University.
Aalto University professors Matti Kuittinen and Antti Lehto acted as experts and design supervisors in the project. The conceptual design was prepared by Havu Järvelä and Heljä Nieminen, PhD students at Aalto University's Department of Architecture.
Demo house recycles and transforms
The house, which can be reassembled, will be designed, built and disassembled at least twice during its short life cycle, using reused or reusable building materials and technologies that promote them.
"We want to prove that a reassembled building has competitive value, and is by no means just a pile of reused materials. We want to show that a reassembled house, when well executed, can be beautiful and usable," says Robert van den Brink, a project manager and research scientist at VTT.
The key to the concept is that, when reused, the house can be transformed for a new use, even in terms of its size and shape. The intention is for the demo house to visit at least two – preferably four – cities. In the first city, the building will serve as a café and, in the second, as an office and meeting space. At the same time, the space will be transformed and almost doubled in size. Of these cities, Espoo participated in the design phase of the building.
The project examines how the value of reused materials and components changes over their life cycle and how they can retain or even increase their value in new applications. This can help in the development of business models and pricing strategies that support the circular economy.
Both large and small companies are invited
Once the concept has been published, VTT will start fundraising for the project. The house will be financed public and private funding, not to mention VTT's own contribution.
"Attracting both public and private funding to build the demo house is essential to the success of the project. It ensures that every participating company is serious and genuinely involved in developing new business around the circular economy. VTT is acting as an impartial catalyst for this development in Finland," says Tuija Pakkanen, Lead, Sustainable Built Environment at VTT.
The companies involved in the project will be able to test materials, products, services, and their compatibility in the Circular Drifter acting as a shared experimental environment. Already at the design stage, it is being ensured that testing is agile, easy and cost-effective for smaller and larger companies alike. The companies do not have to invest in individual, expensive testing projects, which reduces risk and allows smaller players to test their products and develop new ones. Peikko Finland, Kiilto Family, Saint-Gobain, Durat, Aulis Lundell Oy, Sweco and SSAB were involved in the concept phase of the project.
Once funding is secured during 2025, construction will start in spring 2026. At the first site, the house will be operational for a year and, at the second site, for 1-2 years.