Two people in front of a computer.

Explo­ring the Possi­bi­li­ties of Circu­la­rity of Construc­tion Mate­rials: Inter­na­tio­nal Works­hop in Austria

Inter­na­tio­nal colla­bo­ra­tion for exper­tise sharing is an effec­tive way to explore new ideas and chal­len­ges while acknow­led­ging contex­tual barriers simul­ta­neously. The ‘Sustai­nable Buil­ding Tech­no­lo­gies- Commu­nity of Prac­tice’ (SBTCP) project by Karelia UAS in colla­bo­ra­tion with Salz­burg UAS (Austria) and Jade UAS (Germany) is an effec­tive approach towards encou­ra­ging inno­va­tion to solve real-time chal­len­ges. The one-week works­hop for Erasmus+ Blended Inten­sive Program (BIP) suppor­ted by SBTCP was a fruit­ful method to bring students from diffe­rent count­ries toget­her and opened the window for cross-border idea sharing amongst young minds.

Erasmus+ Blended Inten­sive Program in Salz­burg UAS, Austria

Ryhmäkuva työpajan osallistujista ulkona, taustalla vuoristomaisema
Figure 1. Partici­pa­ting students and staff members from three part­ne­ring count­ries (Finland, Austria and Germany).

Figure 01 shows the partici­pants of the works­hop from three part­ne­ring count­ries. The works­hop took place in Salz­burg UAS, Kuchl, Austria, star­ting from the 23rd of May 2022 till the 27th of May 2022. Staff and student partici­pant number from part­ne­ring count­ries was as follows: 18+2 (Germany), 12+3 (Finland), and 10+2 (Austria). There were multiple acti­vi­ties such as a guided tour to Holz Meiss­nitzer GmbH and SIGES GmbH- compa­nies specia­lizing in wood construc­tion, lecture sessions on the circu­lar economy and case study analy­sis of an exis­ting buil­ding located in Salz­burg UAS campus, Kuchl. Partici­pants also created data for Buil­ding Infor­ma­tion Model­ling (BIM) and propo­sed possible scena­rios for circu­la­rity or reuse of construc­tion mate­rials. Finally there was an online presen­ta­tion by the students after the works­hop. Figure 02 shows how the focus areas of the part­ne­ring count­ries in SBTCP project deve­lo­ped the concept of the workshop.

Circular figure.
Figure 2. Diagram showing focus areas alig­ning with SBTCP project for the works­hop in Salz­burg UAS.

On the intro­duc­tion day of the works­hop, acti­vi­ties inclu­ded outdoor dinner and infor­mal discus­sion amongst teac­hers and students, which was an effec­tive way for icebrea­king amongst the students. The first day of the works­hop started with a presen­ta­tion by students from each partici­pa­ting country on the circu­lar economy from each country’s pers­pec­tive (see figure 03). Later the presen­ta­tions, the students were divided into four groups taking students from each part­ne­ring country. The students worked closely with students from cross borders; there­fore, the teamwork moti­va­ted them to commu­nicate in English, which is crucial for presen­ta­tion skill deve­lop­ment on inter­na­tio­nal platforms.

Luokkatila jossa opiskelijat pitävät esitystä valkotaulun edessä, opiskelijoita istuu seuraamassa esitystä.
Figure 3. Students’ presen­ta­tion focusing on current prac­tices of circu­lar economy in each context.

The students had the privi­lege to expe­rience the most updated tech­niques of Buil­ding Infor­ma­tion Mode­ling (BIM) from Jade UAS for point-cloud-based mode­ling; which allowed them to collect buil­ding data using a laser scanner and drone. The students also studied exis­ting drawings of the case study buil­dings to explore how and to what extent mate­rials can be reused for similar purpo­ses or deve­lo­ped into new mate­rials and products. 

The students presen­ted their ideas online on the 8th of June 2022. The findings indica­ted the strong poten­tial of incor­po­ra­ting BIM and impro­ved wood products for the effec­tive and sustai­nable circu­la­rity of timber and wood mate­rials. The comment section by the teac­hers also initia­ted good ground for discus­sions with students as followings:

  1. What are the student’s percep­tions of the adopted tech­nique of collec­ting data from exis­ting drawings of buil­dings? Would it be more effec­tive and time-efficient if each mate­rial data was embed­ded into the digital buil­ding drawings beforehand?
  2. How are the students thin­king of reuse and recycling tech­niques of buil­ding materials?
  3. What are the student’s approac­hes towards circu­la­rity thin­king of buil­ding mate­rials consi­de­ring econo­mic value, carbon footprint, acces­si­bi­lity of services, etc. 

Cross-border Idea Sharing and Educa­tio­nal Development

The works­hop suppor­ted by the SBTCP project shed light on the signi­ficance of the project itself, and how the current chal­len­ges related to resource problems can be addres­sed effec­ti­vely through inter­na­tio­na­lizing the best prac­tices. The inter­na­tio­nal colla­bo­ra­tion also allowed the teac­hers to have a better insight into what to include in future BIPs or interns­hip projects with upco­ming students. The works­hop also cont­ri­bu­ted to better team-buil­ding amongst the part­ne­ring count­ries from further research topics and deve­lop­ment pers­pec­ti­ves. It allowed the experts to have a better insight of best prac­tices avai­lable and how to incor­po­rate the exper­tise in future research, there­fore impro­ving the possi­bi­lity of prac­tice-orien­ted commu­nity deve­lop­ment with new students, researc­hers, and experts.


Author:

Shammi Akter Keya, Project Researc­her, Karelia UAS