Securing Healthy Circular Material Flows In The Built Environment:

Multi-family buildings usually have a fixed subdivision in units with standard layouts. However, households are all different and change over time, as so do their needs and desires. With this in mind, the Open Building concept, which originated in the 1960s, proposed two levels of intervention and decision-making: the (collective) ‘support’ and (individual) ‘infill’. Although the Open Building approach has been embraced conceptually, with a new wave of interest in the Netherlands in recent years, it is remarkably overlooked in the actual design and construction of housing. The current attention for Circular Building puts, once again, the spotlight on Open Building. This renewed attention is due to the shared benefits around flexibility, and as such Circular Building and Open Building are two sides of the same coin. However, there is a big difference between accommodating unforeseen use of space and accommodating foreseen circularity-conditions for material management. Moreover, thus far little attention has been paid to residential user perspectives or the operational processes of Circular Building product and material cycles. Securing healthy circular material flows in the built environment cannot be the objective of one industry, let alone one organisation, but reshuffles whole value networks. This doctoral research adopts multiple perspectives and cuts through different scales and disciplines to derive criteria for indoor partitioning, with an emphasis on user health and well-being, flexibility and circularity. Although focused on partitioning, the findings can be applied to other components, such as kitchen cabinets, furniture, stairs, or to the interior side-sheeting and insulation of walls and ceilings in energy renovations

Securing Healthy Circular Material Flows In The Built Environment

Departing from two problem statements, one concerning circularity in the built environment and one concerning flexibility in the built environment, this dissertation sets out to answer two main research questions: – In an Open Building division of support and infill, to what extent can the infill contribute to sustainable circular material & product flows? – Which qualitative and quantitative criteria and preconditions are central to integrating the notions of user health & well-being, circularity, and flexibility in infill configurations? In view on these research questions, this dissertation revolves around multiple topics and disciplines, addressing material properties, material flows, product design, and user benefits, relating to a specific building component: non-bearing partitioning. The research follows a mixed-method approach, primarily qualitatively driven and supported by quantitative data and tools. Literature studies, workshops and expert consultations are applied throughout the trajectory to derive, test and adjust criteria, guidelines and design concepts. The dissertation is structured around four research chapters (each set-up as a separate academic article), preceded by a general introduction and background sketch, and followed by an overarching evaluation of the findings. The results from the first research chapter (Chapter 3) concern the distinction of various intrinsic and relational properties, as well as an inventory matrix based on building layers and material reutilisation routes. In the next chapter (Chapter 4), a first set of criteria is derived (Circ-Flex I) in order to integrate flexibility, circularity and user benefits. In Chapter 5, criteria are further elaborated, including assessment guidelines that pinpoint health, well-being, and operational performance (Circ- Flex II). The following chapter (Chapter 6) is aimed at design aspects: a design conceptualisation trajectory is laid out, applying design preconditions rooted in the criteria that were shaped in the preceding chapters. Furthermore, a novel flow analysis and modelling method is utilised with respect to secondary raw materials: the Activity-based Spatial Material Flow Analysis (AS-MFA). This stage revolves around materialisation and operational propositions for an innovative partitioning configuration of side-panel and insulation. The innovations are based on renewable material and reversible adhesive technologies. The following conclusions are derived from the research: Circularity in the built environment can only occur if flexibility is fully integrated in the whole building (component) value network, and conversely, flexibility in the built environment increasingly depends on the handling and management of materials designated for healthy, circular applications. – Infill parts, implemented in an Open Building context, enable multiple short to medium length cycles within the longer service lives of multi-family building structures, following changes in user requirements. As such, this model accommodates more sustainable product and material flows. However, decisive success factors are the attitude of and interplay between actors in the value network, not least the end-user. – Technical circularity potential of building products and materials resides at the intersection of intrinsic and relational characteristics. – The differentiation of building layers and parts, in combination with differentiated reutilisation routes, provides leverage for more advanced approaches to circular building strategies, anticipating multiple handling and treatment processes. – To bring circular building to scale in a socially engaged way, value models need to take account of actors’ shared incentives around flexibility and health, as well as split incentives around circularity. – Monitoring the operational performance is key for capitalising on the intrinsic health and circularity potential of building components during their service life. – Research and design exercises into circular building concepts and products benefit reciprocally from data and experience in adjacent disciplines, such as urban planning and waste management, whilst integrating multiple sub-systems associated with value creation in circular models. – Modifications associated with the innovative partition concepts occur above all in raw material sourcing, manufacturing, reutilisation logistics, and data-sharing, of which the latter should extend to the end-user. Next to partitioning, the findings can be relevant for other infill components as well, such as: kitchen cabinets, stairs, furniture, and the interior side-sheeting and insulation of walls and ceilings in energy-renovations. Follow-up research and practical efforts should be aimed at the development and testing of products, as well as value propositions regarding ownership: from regular transactions in which ownership shifts to the customer, to more innovative models in which ownership stays with the supplier or shifts to an intermediary actor (e.g. pay-per-use, buy-back or deposit model). Securing healthy circular material flows in the built environment cannot be the objective of one industry, let alone one organisation, but reshuffles whole value networks. This cannot be done without binding agreements and multi‑criteria learning loops. The first emphasises legal frameworks. This is therefore another prime area for future action. The aspect of multi-criteria learning loops, finally, relates to the need for more sophisticated data-exchange, also engaging endusers, which is nowadays rare in housing

We blog: de casus van weblogs in webarchieven

Weblogs are a difficult source to archive. This is because they are a dynamic source with a very fluid nature; they are rich in references to other sources; and they have intricate internal structures with, in most cases, large archives. If a weblog is not archived all in one go, the website can become fragmented and problematic for researchers: elements might be missing or have been replaced by sections from other versions of the archived (or even online) weblog. It is up to Dutch archives to ensure that a weblog in its entire context is archived as completely as possible, within the bounds of Dutch law. At the same time, it is up to researchers to develop good source criticism and be aware of the problems involved in working with an archived weblog and the ephemeral nature of the internet. For those who rise to these challenges, weblogs offer fantastic opportunities for different types of studies, from close reading to distant reading, and even source code research

Circulair bouwen in de gevelindustrie: Een verkennende studie naar de sociale aspecten

Rapport in opdracht van de Vereniging Metalen Ramen en Gevelbranche (VRMG) en Vereniging Kunststof Gevelelementen-industrie (VKG) in het kader van MIT haalbaarheidsstudie topsector Logistiek.Architectural Engineering +TechnologyArchitecture and The Built Environmen

Open infill design in co-creation : practical steps towards a new modular wall conceptT

Abstract: Open Building, as conceptualised by Habraken in the 1960s, implies that residents become facilitated to (re)arrange the layout of their homes without too much effort and in line with their needs, while structural architectural elements remain intact. Changes in the infill domain, through interventions at foreseen and unforeseen moments in time, have a strong material implication. This material side is at the heart of this article. The focus is on adaptability of the non-structural interior domain, while unlocking associated materials to flow at short to medium-cyclic frequencies (roughly between 1 and 25 years). From that vantage point, this design-study sets out to establish a prototype for an Open Infill configuration, specifically aimed at non-bearing walls. Three aspects in particular informed the design and development trajectory: 1) purity of applied resources, 2) circularity potential of the applied materials, and 3) engagement of the stakeholders. The result is a lightweight, stackable wall module, made out of renewable fibers from local origin, assembled with reversible joints, and customisable for specific communities. The next stage concerns testing of the concept in practice, aimed at a small wall in a community center in the Netherlands. Although this testing stage is beyond the scope of this article, the discussion section includes insights from the design and development process that are essential to assess the concept\u2019s performance over time

Design for Change and Circularity: Accommodating Circular Material & Product Flows in Construction

Circular building concepts, as proposed within e.g. Circular Economy and Cradle-to-Cradle frameworks, imply radical changes for the construction sector. Cradle-to-Cradle® in particular has put forward the idea of buildings as material banks, radically altering the way material flows need to be managed. The notion of material banks (temporary storage of materials that comprise the building assemblies) sheds new light on the value of building materials and products, and how to maintain and restore this. The basics are straightforward: high quality, pure material use and anticipated material regeneration routes. The implications for the supply and value chain, however, are significant, and research in this direction has only recently taken off. To smoothen the path to implementation, circular building principles may be combined with Design-for-Adaptability (DfA) guidelines, as developed over the last decades. DfA guidelines are rooted in enhanced resilience of the built environment on the one hand, and the associated constructive implications on the other. Synergy between the concepts of circularity and adaptability, with regard to the Dutch context, is at the heart of this paper. The main research question is: what are prerequisites for an effective performance of materials, products, services and buildings in the case circularity is a leading ambition? The research is structured around four interdisciplinary expert workshops in which knowledge and experiences were shared, discussed, tested and redefined, leading to a set of preconditions for circular building material and product flows. A key finding is that circularity-values emerge at the intersection of specific intrinsic properties (material and product characteristics) and relational properties (building design and use characteristics), whilst combining multiple parameters. In separation, neither intrinsic nor relational properties have decisive significance with regard to circularity; it is on the crossing where fulfillment is created. This paper finishes by discussing the findings from the perspectives of lifespan, monitoring, ownership, and standardization.Climate Design and Sustainabilit

Accelerating circular city development

Abstract only. - In Circular Cities, resources that drive human activities are by definition regenerative rather than linear or degenerative: be it energy, water, materials, nutrients or air. Meaning the focus shifts from gradual destruction of resource-value – “take, make, waste” – to value-creation through models based on cascades and cycles. In order to establish such regenerative resource flows that retain or increase value in cities’ subsystems there is dire need for new concepts as well as rigorous and critical testing of existing ones: both at an academic and practical level. This relates for example to aligning & connecting flows, exploring shared value models, implementing smart sensing technologies, identifying negative external effects etc. The impact on how cities are conceived, materialized and operationalized in a circular framework can hardly be overstated. Some impacts can be imagined, based on current knowledge, but others can at best be anticipated. This is due to cities being complex, adaptive systems in which “an increasing number of independent variables begin interacting in interdependent and unpredictable ways” [Sanders 2008]. The implications of a circular agenda are thus significant, and we only just begin to fathom the magnitude. Moreover, there is a proliferation of different interpretations concerning the meaning of ‘circular’. Some interpretations are essentially linear processes made more efficient, whereas other interpretations may seem ‘too holistic to succeed’. Accommodating circular processes in all their diversity means that potential contradictions in the actions we take need careful consideration. The abovementioned notions resonate in the Circular City research program through three, strongly interrelated subthemes: 1) materials & buildings, 2) nutrients recovery, and 3) urban energy systems. Each subtheme has its own research priorities, informed by the interplay between society, science and business, rooted in the definition that circular cities understand, establish, monitor and control circular economy principles in an urban context, whilst realizing the vision of a resilient, future-proof city. An important focus within the 1st theme is on materials that are temporarily stored in built constructions for diverging periods of time. Including the question how to streamline supply, demand and conversion processes of those materials, components and buildings on different time- and scale levels. The 2nd theme concerns nutrient recovery from (waste) water streams. At stake are methods and systems to better reutilize nutrients, materials and energy in water flows, as well as the integration of wastewater treatment systems on various scales in urban regions. The 3rd theme centres on the transition to renewable energy sources and its spatial and infrastructural implications, dealing with increased variability in consumption, storage and production, and concerning multiple energy products and services. This theme accentuates innovation in systems engineering & integration, energy storage, and ICT, adopting a citizen perspective

Circular and Flexible Indoor Partitioning—A Design Conceptualization of Innovative Materials and Value Chains

This article sheds light on the materialization and operation of residential partitioning wall components in relation to circular and flexible performance. The hypothesis is twofold: (1) A stronger integration of materialization and operation aspects is indispensable in establishing sustainable value-models, and (2) recent innovations, concerning the reversibility of material connections, will help disrupting the status-quo in that respect. Attention is drawn to renewable natural fibre composites (NFC), reversible adhesives, and biodegradable insulation materials. After a background sketch regarding the notion of time, change, and material circularity in design and planning, the housing challenge in the Amsterdam metropolitan area (AMA, the Netherlands) is described. Next, a design conceptualization stage is introduced, informed by two methods and tools in particular: Circ-Flex assessment, and activity-based spatial material flow analysis. Results of the conceptualization stage are presented regarding materialization and operation, culminating in Circ-Flex partitioning components, more specifically: Side panels and insulation. It was found that NFC can tackle current issues relating, most prominently, to circularity performance. Associated modifications in the value-chain occur, above all, in raw material sourcing, manufacturing, reutilization logistics, and data-sharing. The outcomes are valid for multiple building components other than indoor partitioning, such as kitchens and furniture, but also insulation—and interior side-sheeting—of walls and roofs in energy-renovations

A contextual and spatial approach towards resource cycles

Multiple system-based concepts exist to analyse and manage urban throughput of resource flows, examples are Urban Metabolism, Industrial Ecology and Energy Potential Mapping. Common threads in these propositions are fundamental principles valid in nature, notably homeostasis and thermodynamics. Those and likeminded concepts are valuable links in the shift from a reductionist towards a holistic notion of the built environment. However, practical implementations of system-based interventions appear to lag behind. This ‘system failure’ can be allocated to the inherent complex nature of associated challenges and threats. This paper focuses on attributes of sustainable urban development that are as yet insufficiently understood, revolving around contextuality and spatiality. A case study in the metropolitan region of Amsterdam Airport Schiphol is introduced to explore regional synergies, in particular with regard to two hotspot zones. It is urged that for sustainable resource management, regional systems-integration is a critical factor. Unravelling supply & demand patterns in the designated area unveiled multiple potentials for circular resource flows and mutual benefits for networked actors.Architectural Engineering +TechnologyArchitecture and The Built Environmen