From demolition material to resource: large-scale reuse in Solna
In Solna Business Park, Svenska kraftnät's new headquarters, a 52,000-square-meter building, is taking shape. Here, they are exploring how circular construction can work in practice, with parts of the existing building being carefully dismantled and given new life. To ensure that the heavy concrete elements can actually be reclaimed in a safe and standardized way, NCC has enlisted the help of RISE.
The Yrket 4 construction project involves reclaiming 6,000 square meters of joists, 1,300 square meters of brick, 600 windows, and 400 square meters of stone flooring from the old office buildings. The reuse includes both structural elements and interior materials, which requires systematic methods for dismantling, inspection, and quality control.
For NCC, the collaboration with RISE was key to scaling up its reuse work.
“The large amount of material we are reclaiming in the project not only reduces the project's climate footprint here and now, but also provides us with important lessons on how we can work in future projects. We are achieving significant climate reduction, and we are also developing processes that can be scaled up and standardized,” says Daniel Johansson at NCC.
This demonstrates that heavy concrete elements can be reclaimed on a large scale when processes and responsibilities are clearly defined.
Test results exceeded expectations
RISE was responsible for sampling, site visits, and full-scale laboratory tests at the facility in Borås. The focus was on assessing whether the prefabricated HDF floor joists could be dismantled, stored, and reinstalled without compromising structural integrity, load-bearing capacity, or service life. The analyses showed that the elements had a higher capacity than they were originally designed for.
“The compressive strength and load-bearing capacity exceeded expectations, and the estimated remaining service life was at least 50 years – fully in line with the requirements for today's buildings,” says Jan Suchorzewski, Market Manager at RISE.
But the road to get there was not without obstacles. The logistics of dismantling and sampling required meticulous planning. Time windows were tight, space was limited, and the work had to be coordinated with the other stages of the construction project.
"The logistics were complex, but thanks to clear coordination from NCC, we were able to carry out our analyses exactly when they were needed. This shows that heavy concrete elements can be reclaimed on a large scale when processes and responsibilities are clearly defined," says Jan Suchorzewski.
RISE has given us both security and speed in the decision-making process. Their tests enabled us to move from ambition to actual implementation.
From international guidelines to Swedish standards
At the same time, the team grappled with another challenge: the lack of a Swedish standard for the reuse of prefabricated concrete elements. On behalf of the end customer, they chose to rely on a Norwegian standard, a pragmatic choice but also a clear sign that the industry needs national guidelines.
“The regulations must be one step ahead. Even though today's system allows reuse, clearer guidelines are needed to make the process smoother,” says Jan Suchorzewski.
RISE, together with industry representatives, is participating in the SIS TK191 “Prefabricated concrete products” standardization committee to develop a standard that can guide future projects. The standard is based on the Norwegian standard and includes the method developed by RISE for quality assurance of concrete elements, which has already been verified in several real-world projects.
Lessons learned from the work
The reuse of heavy construction materials is increasingly in demand in the construction industry, but it requires careful planning, collaboration, and technical expertise to become a reality. Yrket 4 shows how these factors interact in practice. By taking inventory of materials early on and conducting preliminary investigations, the project team was able to identify reuse potential and solve both technical and logistical challenges.
"RISE has given us both security and momentum in the decision-making process. Their tests enabled us to move from ambition to actual implementation. Without that kind of scientific support, the reuse of heavy concrete elements could not have been scaled up in the same way," says Daniel Johansson at NCC.
Part of Återhus
Yrket 4 is part of Återhus – a major innovation and research project in which RISE, NCC, and several other players are developing processes and tools to make the reuse of climate-intensive materials possible in practice. The ambition is to create a knowledge base that can pave the way for standardization, upscaling, and a more circular construction industry.
