Grantee Research Project Results

Final Report: ID-REUSE (platform  of existing buildings for salvageable / reusable products and materials, prior to renovation, demolition, and deconstruction)

EPA Contract Number: 68HERC24C0028
Title: ID-REUSE (platform  of existing buildings for salvageable / reusable products and materials, prior to renovation, demolition, and deconstruction)
Investigators: Guy, George
Small Business: Material Reuse LLC
EPA Contact: Richards, April
Phase: I
Project Period: December 1, 2023 through May 30, 2024
Project Amount: $99,940
RFA: Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) - Phase I (2024) RFA Text |  Recipients Lists
Research Category: Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR)

Description:

The US EPA estimated in 2018 that there are approximately 188 million tons of construction and demolition waste (C&D) generated annually in the US. Approximately 34% of this materials stream is from residential renovation and demolition. The purpose of this research was to develop the mobile application called ID_REUSE to streamline the residential salvage and deconstruction assessment process to increase the efficiency and scale of the recovery of salvageable / reusable products and materials prior to residential building renovation and demolition. The building assessment process is the essential first step to planning building material salvage and deconstruction and effectively placing the recovered materials into the reuse supply chain.

As population increases, demands for urban infill increase, natural disasters increase in severity and frequency, and the US building construction stock built after WW-II is increasingly obsolete and requires deep retrofits and replacement, the residential renovation and demolition “waste” stream will increase. Demolition / disposal and deconstruction / salvage / reuse are competing strategies for managing C&D materials. Reuse or extending the life of building products after first use reduces greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by substituting for the production of new materials (an approximately 90% reduction on average), and reducing the emissions of methane, a short-lived GHG more potent than CO2, from organics (wood) in landfills.

Summary/Accomplishments (Outputs/Outcomes):

We have estimated that the formal building materials reuse economy in the US is approximately $2 billion annually in direct sales (of reclaimed materials), and comprises approximately 1,640 businesses and non-profits, whereas the site preparation sector (including building demolition and land-clearing) is estimated at $2.2 billion in direct sales (of demolition services) and approximately two-times the number of businesses. The Harvard Center for Joint Housing Studies has estimated that the residential remodeling sector in the US is approximately annual $450 billion in expenditures.

We have estimated that <0.5% of the annual C&D waste stream is currently reused, whereas in Europe the current estimate of building materials “waste” reuse is at least 1%, and 5% is considered a technically feasible target. To increase C&D materials reuse, a few municipalities in the US have established building deconstruction mandates or incentives, as well as targets for not just recycling however also reuse of building products. In addition, green building certification schemes include C&D waste management components and points for green building products including reuse.

Municipalities, green building programs and the market of salvage and reuse businesses and non-profit organizations all rely on some form of deconstruction or salvage assessment as the first stage in the process of materials recovery. The current state of practice of the assessment process is fragmented, with different entities utilizing a range of data compilation and reporting methods. The ID_REUSE tool development is based on extensive customer discovery and market surveys that have identified the critical features and needs for use of the tool. As a mobile application it will be readily available to anyone who currently uses an iPhone or iPad.

Conclusions:

Based on the research in this project we have developed a roadmap for implementation of the ID-REUSE technology and its minimum viable product (MVP) design. This includes the early adopter target market of the tool. The tool is also designed to couple the salvage assessment with transmittal of this information in the most effective ways to building Owners who make the decisions for salvage and deconstruction, business-to-business (B2B) transactions for donation or sales of salvaged materials, and reporting that may be adapted for meeting requirements of municipalities and green building certifications. The small business construction sector has traditionally been a laggard in the use of software, however the wide adoption of mobile of applications across society – which has increased literacy in the use of applications, the rapid on-going development of Artificial Intelligence, and the demands for increase effectiveness and reductions in embodied greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the construction sector, provide for the timely introduction and wide-scale adoption of ID_REUSE into the construction market.