Innovation in action: Products and services for the re-use of building components and materials

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How can Europe move from a linear construction model towards one where building materials and components remain in use for longer?

As the built environment faces growing pressure to reduce resource use, emissions and construction and demolition waste, circular approaches are creating new opportunities to reuse existing materials, design for future disassembly and make better-informed decisions about material use.

Through its engagement with EU-funded projects, STAR*track is identifying and showcasing innovations that are helping to put circular construction into practice across Europe.

This article brings together a selection of solutions addressing different parts of the circular value chain, from reclaimed materials and design-for-disassembly approaches to digital tools that assess building circularity.

Please note: This page will be updated regularly as additional projects and innovations are added.

Featured circular projects and innovations

Drastic – “Re:Textile”, circular construction facility with reclaimed-timber structure

Innovation type: Material

Innovation development status: In use

A circular construction approach that:

  • uses reclaimed structural timber, glulam (glued laminated timber), steel roof plates and insulation panels recovered from a decommissioned cryptomining warehouse
  • demonstrates how reclaimed materials can be safely reused in structural and building applications, reducing demand for virgin materials
  • reduces environmental impacts, with life cycle assessment (LCA) results showing reductions of 38–95% across categories such as climate change, acidification, and resource use compared with conventional construction using virgin materials
  • demonstrates the potential for cost-efficient, scalable circular construction, including an estimated 8.6-tonne reduction in CO₂e emissions

Drastic– DFAD™ circular building processes and C-Joint™ connectors

Innovation type: System

Innovation development status: Under development (TRL7)

A circular building system that:

  • Enables buildings and building components to be assembled and disassembled easily and quickly, supporting reuse across multiple lifecycles
  • Uses Design for Assembly and Disassembly (DFAD™) principles to create flexible, adaptable, reusable and scalable building structures
  • Uses C-Joint™ connectors to create disassemblable structural frames across a range of shapes, building typologies and applications
  • Supports faster construction and the development of local circular value chains by enabling components to be easily reused, reconfigured and repurposed

Sircular– CIAT – Circularity Index Assessment Tool for Buildings

Innovation type: Software / System / Technology (Digital Decision Support System for Circular Construction)

Innovation development status: Under development / Demonstration phase (Horizon Europe Innovation Action). The tool is being validated in real demonstration buildings within the SIRCULAR project (TRL expected: 6–7 by end of project – system demonstrated in relevant environment).

A digital decision-support tool that:

  • uses Building Information Modelling (BIM) to assess the circularity and recyclability of buildings across their life cycle
  • assesses factors including disassembly, material separation and end-of-life recycling
  • integrates LCA and Life Cycle Costing (LCC) to support more informed design and investment decisions
  • provides both advanced BIM-based and simplified versions, supporting use by technical and non-technical stakeholders

Next steps

These innovations demonstrate how circular value chains can be strengthened across different stages of the built environment lifecycle — from recovering and reusing existing materials, to designing buildings for future disassembly, and developing digital tools to measure and support circularity.

STAR*track will continue to engage with EU-funded projects and expand this overview, highlighting practical solutions and real-world applications that can help keep building materials and components in use for longer and support the transition towards a more circular built environment across Europe.

Innovation in action: unlocking data and digitalisation for smarter buildings in Europe’s built environment

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As Europe’s built environment becomes increasingly digital, secure data sharing, interchangable platforms and intelligent systems are becoming essential to improve building performance, enable smarter decision-making and accelerate the clean energy transition.

From data space connectivity to integrated renovation platforms and service-level energy optimisation, digital innovation is reshaping how buildings, systems and users interact across the energy and information and communication technology (ICT) landscape.

Through its engagement with European Union (EU)-funded projects, STAR*track is identifying and showcasing innovations that are being developed, tested and deployed across Europe.

This article brings together a growing portfolio of data and digitalisation-focused solutions that address the challenge from different angles, from secure data exchange systems to user-driven sustainable digital infrastructure.

Please note: This page will be updated regularly as additional projects and innovations are added.

 

Featured data and digitalisation projects and innovations:

WeForming – Data Space Connector

Innovation type: Software
Innovation development status: under development (MVP 2.0)

A secure and interoperable data-sharing solution that:

  • enables seamless and sovereign sharing of datasets and energy applications across intelligent grid-forming buildings (iGFBs)
  • provides a modular connector with local data storage, data management and a user-friendly interface
  • supports interoperability through alignment with European Common Energy Data Spaces
  • introduces Connector-as-a-Service (CaaS), enabling buildings to connect to data spaces without complex hardware or software installations.

Learn more about WeForming.

EBENTO – One-Stop-Shop Platform for Energy Performance Contracting and Renovation

Innovation type: Software / System
Innovation development status: Under development (TRL 7–8, public testing phase)

A collaborative digital renovation platform that:

  • brings together renovation design, financing, contracting and performance monitoring within a single platform
  • uses BIM-based simulations to compare technical and financial renovation scenarios
  • includes digital Energy Performance Contracts (EnPC), smart contracts and digital logbooks to improve transparency and traceability
  • helps reduce transaction costs while strengthening collaboration and citizen engagement throughout the renovation process.

Learn more about EBENTO.

EXIGENCE – Per-Service Energy Consumption in Sustainable 6G

Innovation type: System / Technology
Innovation development status: Under development (TRL 4 validated in lab and 5G testbed environments)

A service-layer energy optimisation approach that:

  • measures and optimises energy consumption and carbon emissions at the service level rather than only the infrastructure level
  • encourages users to adopt lower-carbon service options through dynamic incentive mechanisms
  • connects ICT performance with carbon markets to support commercially viable, sustainability-driven operations
  • contributes to international standardisation, helping accelerate the adoption of greener digital infrastructure.

Learn more about EXIGENCE.

Next steps

These innovations aim to demonstrate how secure data spaces, integrated digital platforms and service-level optimisation can transform how buildings and digital systems operate, supporting greater efficiency, transparency and sustainability across Europe’s built environment.

STAR*track will continue to engage with EU-funded projects and expand this overview, highlighting practical and emerging solutions as they are developed, tested and deployed across Europe.

How can STAR*track tools help the built environment transition towards a sustainable and competitive future?

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On 22 June 2026, representatives of businesses, academia, and public and professional organisations came together for an event delivered by STAR*track Built4People Innovation Cluster (B4PIC) e-CODOMH to discuss this key question.

The workshop, “Innovation Tools for the Construction Industry: Compliance and Sustainability in the Context of the New CPR 2024”, was opened by George Iliadis, e-CODOMH, and Yiannis Koulizakos, EBETAM A.E. – MIRTEC S.A.. In their opening remarks, both speakers highlighted the importance of compliance, sustainability and innovation in the new era of the building and construction industry.

Compliance and Sustainability Under Regulation (EU) 2024/3110 (CPR)

The first session focused on the new European Union (EU) Construction Products Regulation (CPR), with executives from the General Secretariat for Industry (GSI) presenting the requirements for economic operators and the challenges associated with implementing the regulation.

During the session, presenters emphasised that environmental sustainability in the new regulation is now established as a mandatory and measurable parameter for construction products.

The discussion highlighted the growing importance of sustainability requirements within the European construction sector and the need for businesses to prepare for the new regulatory landscape.

Innovation Tools for the Construction Industry – The STAR*track Tools

The second session showcased a range of practical tools developed through the STAR*track project to support innovation across the built environment.

Konstantina (Dia) Andreouli of e-CODOMH introduced the Greek B4PIC, before a series of presentations explored the project’s available digital tools and resources.

These included:

  • The Metabuilding Platform – Asier Hernandez Minaberry, from prpject partner Metabuilding, presented the platform, its tools and services designed to support the built environment ecosystem.
  • Digital Product Passport (DPP) – Agnese Riccetti, from project partner EcoWise, analysed the Digital Product Passport tool, which aims to become a key information portal for regulators, builders and architects.
  • Funding Opportunities – Vasiliki Tsotoulidi, R-NanoLab, presented a practical guide to European public funding opportunities available to organisations working within the built environment.

Supporting the Transition to a Sustainable Built Environment

The workshop highlighted that incorporating innovation, compliance and sustainability into every area of the built environment is no longer optional—it is a necessity.

By developing practical digital tools and supporting collaboration across industry, research and public organisations, the STAR*track project is helping businesses navigate regulatory change while accelerating the transition towards a more sustainable and competitive European construction sector.

Built4People and the STAR*track project would like to thank all attendees and presenters for their valuable contributions to the event.

Learn more about the STAR*track project.