Reusable building products from the building parts bank

Reusable doors, window frames, bricks and other construction materials can now be purchased from a new construction parts bank.

The Regional Council of Uusimaa and Spolia Design announced at the beginning of October that they would launch Finland's first a construction parts bank focused on reuse.

The building component bank's task is to train and guide municipalities in reuse. In addition, three or four reuse projects are being piloted there. Both municipalities and private companies receive help and advice in finding suitable building components.

Models from Sweden

There are only a few similar construction component banks in Europe. The Finnish version was modeled after the reuse marketplaces operating in Sweden.

"Reuse of building components is still in its infancy. One major bottleneck that industry players have seen is the lack of storage and marketplace," circular economy expert at the Uusimaa Circular Economy Valley Pepsa Salolammi says and continues:

"It is difficult for an individual company or municipality to launch their own marketplace profitably, so we concluded that this requires public support and bringing together actors. We provide a platform and expert assistance, and we hope that as many people as possible will be excited to try the service with a low threshold."

According to Salolampi, the platform can help the entire construction sector achieve a sustainability leap.

Lower the threshold

Salolammi and Spolia Design Mikko Piitulainen presented the new construction parts bank at a coffee morning organized by the Helsinki Circular Economy Cluster Program on October 1 in Helsinki.

Approximately 60 participants arrived at the Business Helsinki premises to hear the latest news about circular economy innovations in wood products and circular economy storage solutions.

The purpose of the construction parts bank is to increase the supply and demand for parts suitable for reuse and to lower the threshold for including reuse in construction projects.

When good building parts remain in municipal projects, it is not a good idea to throw them on the waste platform, but to direct them to a new use through the marketplace.

Those implementing a construction project should also check whether reusable doors or paving stones, for example, can be purchased through the marketplace.

The most important thing is learning.

The pilot also offers training in the reuse of building components to municipal contractors, architects, designers and other interested parties.

Spolia Design offers support for developing a municipal project model to promote reuse. In addition, municipalities will receive support for procurement, ongoing construction, demolition and property management services, and pricing, among other things.

The construction component bank consists of a physical and digital marketplace.

The construction component bank includes a piloting period during which municipalities or other actors pilot their own reuse projects. The business model is developed together with the actors who have joined the construction component bank.

The activities, funded by the Region of Uusimaa, will begin this year and will last until the end of 2026. The activities will continue after this.

"We want it to be easy to try out the marketplace and safe to reuse building components, so we are investing in a new kind of service concept and building a broad customer base and high-quality product range. The most important thing here is learning a new operating model. The goal is to increase expertise in the entire sector," says Salolammi.

Physical marketplace in Nurmijärvi

The actual physical marketplace for building components operates in Nurmijärvi. Spolia's premises on Kutojantie in Espoo also have a showroom-like presentation space.

Spolia will lead and guide the pilot phase and help operators implement the different phases of reuse. The piloting is planned to be implemented in four phases. First, an inventory will be carried out in three or four demolition or renovation sites. Next, the removal of the building components intact and their qualification will be planned and implemented.

The building components are refurbished if necessary and stored temporarily. They are then put on the market and trained and supported in the procurement processes.

"We are also compiling instructions and recommendations for the use, promotion of reuse and operation of the construction parts bank. The instructions can also be used as procurement documents," Spolian says. Mikko Piitulainen clarify.

The construction component bank is also intended to conduct a business analysis for the future during the project.

"The success of the pilot depends on all of us. If we can bring enough private and public sector actors together, it will bring volume and simultaneously increase both the supply and demand for reusable building components," Salolammi invites cooperation.

Text: Elina Saarinen, Uusiouutiset-magazine

Photo: Elina Saarinen. Pipsa Salolammi from the Uusimaa Circular Economy Valley and Mikko Piitulainen from Spolia launched a reusable construction parts bank in Helsinki at the beginning of October.