Circular economy buildings - saving capital costs

Applying circular economy design principles to your building should increase its value over its life. Circular buildings are able to retain value over the long term by being more flexible and adaptable; they provide a healthier internal environment by eliminating toxins (such as VOCs) from finishes; the interiors are designed to be easier to adjust, maintain and upgrade by applying 'design for disassembly' principles; and they deliver a positive residual value at end of life.

But a more valuable building in the long term is no help when there is a tight capital cost budget to meet.

So do circular buildings have to cost more to build?

Not necessarily. There are alternative circular approaches that have the potential to reduce capital costs:

• Partnering with the supply chain to reduce construction time. This is demonstrated in the Park 20:20 case study in my book: very early engagement with the supply chain enabled the building to be assembled on site, rather than constructed and reduced delays and uncertainty.
• Leasing instead of purchasing plant and equipment to move Capex to Opex. For example, Mitsubishi lifts offer a leasing service and Philips has ‘Pay-per-lux’ that allows people to lease lighting.
• Lighter frame construction requires less foundations, as demonstrated in The Enterprise Centre case study in my book where lean design required only a tenth of the foundations of a conventional design.
• Resource efficiency (e.g. design out heating distribution systems; using materials with inherent finishes, such as polished concrete floors, corten steel, etc.).
• Reclaimed and re-manufactured components can be cheaper than new, and just as good. RMF ECO-Range re-manufacturers raised floor tiles, re-warranties them and sells them for around 75% of the cost of new tiles.
• Speed of installation: eliminating wet trades speeds up construction and allows ease of maintenance, reconfiguration and reuse.

So, there’s the potential to save time, capital costs, operational costs and retain the value of the building for longer. What’s not to like?