Reuse of building materials: Karstadt relies on startup Concular

Sad but true: Until now, the construction industry has been the world’s biggest polluter in terms of material and energy consumption. To change that soon, the Berlin-based startup Concular is helping well-known companies recycle building materials. Co-founder Dominik Campanella tells us how this came about and how the current cooperation between Concular and Karstadt works exactly in an interview with Ambivation.

Hey Dominik, first tell us something about your personal background! How did you come to found Concular?

I actually don’t come from the construction industry myself, but studied computer science and management. After that, I had the opportunity to work for Google in different countries. In 2012, my friend Julius and I met an architect who impressively told us about how much waste is generated on construction sites and that until then there was no real way to recycle.

Alongside our work, we founded Resta do.de, today Europe’s largest marketplace for building materials from deconstruction as well as materials left over on construction sites. However, we primarily target private individuals and small businesses with this. When we realized that the topic of reuse was growing, we quit our jobs and founded Concular. Here we work on projects in the millions with well-known partners such as SIGNA , Mercedes Benz, Telekom and many others.

That sounds exciting! Why is the topic of reuse so hot right now, especially in the construction sector?

The construction industry is not only by far the largest CO2 producer in the world. It also consumes around 80 percent of all materials and is responsible for 60 percent of our waste. At a time when the shortage of raw materials and climate change are becoming increasingly noticeable, it is imperative that something be done about this. In addition, building owners have to comply with stricter legal regulations. For example, many have to draw up a life cycle assessment.

How do you help your customers to act more sustainably?

On the one hand, we help customers to reuse materials that are generated during the dismantling of construction sites, so that the costs for disposal are eliminated. In some cases, the reuse takes place within the customer’s own construction project. In others, the building materials are sold to third parties. This means that we also support builders who consciously want to use sustainable, reclaimed materials. In addition, we often receive inquiries from architectural firms interested in our materials catalog for aesthetic reasons.

Can you tell us more about one of your current collaborative partnerships?

Yes, with pleasure! We are currently working with SIGNA at Karstadt am Hermann-Platz, for example. We completely digitized the department store at Hermann-Platz in Berlin, cataloged all the materials and made sure they were reused in their own building – because that’s the most sustainable – or at other construction sites in the Berlin area.

How did you get in touch with Karstadt?

Actually, a project developer approached us directly because there were so many materials in the building that were still in pretty good condition.

How do you go about digitizing?

We are able to make 3-D scans of the building. We’ve also developed our own software that can even recognize some of the materials. But we can’t do it completely without people. Of course, we still have to do some post-processing.

Were there any particular challenges you had to overcome on this project?

Definitely: The building was repeatedly expanded in seven different construction phases. That means there were many different materials and there were many different players involved. But the biggest challenge was that the building remained in operation while it was being recorded.

Not everyone can imagine how materials from previous decades can be reused in a new building and look really chic. How did you deal with that in this project?

After we cataloged all the materials, an architectural competition was held, and there is now a winner. Generally speaking, we have a number of architects on our team and can give our customers good advice in this regard

Not everyone can imagine how materials from previous decades are reused in a new building and look really chic at the same time. How did you deal with this in this project?

After we had cataloged all the materials, an architectural competition was announced, and there is now a winner. Generally speaking, we have a number of architects on our team and can give our customers good advice in this regard.

What do you say to potential customers who think that reuse would be too time-consuming and expensive compared to disposal?

Of course, such a deconstruction takes a certain amount of time. But compared to disposal, reuse is much cheaper. Then there is the energy balance. If we reuse a steel girder, that means an energy saving of 98 percent compared to new construction.

And how do you deal with contaminated materials?

We always find a solution for that. In fact, almost all buildings contain contaminated building materials, especially older buildings from before 2000. We then draw up a contaminant report. And appropriate protective clothing must be worn during deconstruction.

That sounds really good! What drives you personally, Dominik?

The construction industry is the biggest polluter in the world. If we could change just one percent of the industry, that would be a huge success.

And what are your plans for the near future?

We are currently planning the opening of the first Reuse DIY store in Berlin together with the Berlin Senate.

Contact

Website: https://concular.de

LinkedIn: Dominik Campanella