Topics
We organise our actions in six thematic & strategic agendas:
Strategic Agendas:
Bio-economy
Circular Construction
Chemicals/Plastics
Manufacturing Industry
Food Chain
Water Cycles
Seven leverages provide additional support:
Leverage effects:
Lever Policy Instruments
Lever Circular Procurement
Lever Communication
Lever Innovation & Entrepreneurship
Lever Financing
Lever Jobs & Skills
Lever Research
What, why and how?
Why are we pursuing a circular economy?
Future visions 2050
How do we see our circular future?
About our management
Who steers what at Flanders Circular?
Circular Identity (C-iD)
Applying element passports in practice
To minimize the use of new raw materials in the construction sector and to close material loops, we need to reuse existing building elements more. Due to a lack of information, this is currently not always feasible on a large scale for technical or legal reasons. To simplify this, we need to know where the element comes from, how it can be dismantled, what maintenance it received, etc.
With this project, Mosard, in collaboration with Cordium, Pixii, and VIBE, concretely developed the concept of element passports for circular building elements into an online platform and a digital application.
Together with a focus group of various stakeholders (architects, property managers, contractors, research institutions...), we determined which data, parameters, and criteria could be included in buildings, passports, or products. In addition, practical test cases showed us how clients use the passport, which parameters they fill in, and how user-friendly it needs to be.
Thanks to those practical lessons, we arrived at a uniform format that can be efficiently applied in construction practice: the Circular Identity or C-iD.
The platform is accessible via www.c-id.org and the app is available in the Apple and Google Play stores.
Website
MOST IMPORTANT
RESULTS
- Through a series of co-creation sessions with various stakeholders, we developed C-iD: a digital tool to create element passports that makes it possible to create a digital construction file that is accessible and editable anywhere.
- We conducted multiple practical tests in the buildings of two social housing associations. Based on those results, we were able to further refine the app to simplify the work of property managers in terms of maintenance, renovation, and deconstruction.
- C-iD provides not only an ecological impact but also financial and logistical added value. It can easily be scaled to other social housing associations. They are an important segment of the construction sector but often lack the resources for sustainable innovations.
- Within the app, we launched a second-hand materials portal. Through the passport, the owner can make a building element available to other users within the platform. The passport then becomes the information carrier for the item offered for sale.
MOST IMPORTANT
LESSONS LEARNED
- To make C-iD as workable as possible, we wanted to involve the entire construction chain and as many stakeholders as possible. However, this also led to (too) many different viewpoints. Therefore, in the initial phase, we decided to focus on feedback from the end user.
- There is a big difference between theoretical knowledge of generic materials and the available practical and technical data. By testing theory against practice, we learned lessons about the actual implementation of the principle and also mapped out the feasibility and added value.
- External factors can cause delays. For example, the test cases and feedback were delayed due to a reorganization within the social housing associations. We were able to adjust the project by adding extra test cases with another housing organization.
- Software development is often underestimated and never finished. C-iD will continue to evolve and require further effort. We can start with a minimum viable product, but expectations are high among end users who are already familiar with many digital tools.
WHAT DOES
THE FUTURE HOLD?
Through collaboration with the social housing associations Cordium and LeefGoed, we know that the app is already being used to digitally compile reuse inventories during demolition and dismantling. Besides other social housing associations, the principle is also broadly applicable and particularly interesting for property managers, companies, and organizations with a large real estate portfolio — including municipalities.
Furthermore, both Pixii and VIBE intend to include C-iD in their training programs on the topic of circular construction.
Finally, C-iD was included in the European Icon project ‘Re-Ennovate’ (Flux 50), led by Buildwise (WTCB). This means that further research into element passports is guaranteed, and the application can continue to grow in line with the renovation market.
