cepezed has collaborated on a new measuring method for determining and comparing demountability: the detachability index. The method is an initiative of the Dutch Green Building Council (DGBC), RVO, W/E Adviseurs and Alba Concepts. During a meeting last week, an initial report on the methodology was presented to the project leader Circular Construction Economy of the Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations, Esther ‘t Hoen.
The detachability index is suitable for measuring demountability at all levels within both utility projects and residential construction. For existing sustainability instruments such as GPR and BREEAM, it offers possibilities for the integration of the detachability aspect. After all, demountability is an important precondition for passing on building products and materials to subsequent cycles.
The index examines four aspects that influence the detachability of building elements: the type of connections with which they are attached, the accessibility of those connections, possible traverses by, for example, installations, and the shapes in which the elements are included. The index also applies a weighting factor related to the scores on the MPG (Environmental Performance of Buildings) system. For elements with a higher environmental impact, this creates an additional incentive to implement them as detachable as possible.
The index was created with the cooperation of the Central Government Real Estate Agency, ABN AMRO, Traject, de Architecten Cie and cepezed. Five buildings were tested in practice, including Circl, HOTT and Galileo. Of cepezed, the Amsterdam Temporary Courthouse and The Green House in Utrecht were reviewed. Both buildings scored well over eighty percent. The detachability index will be available to everyone and will continue to evolve in practice.
The detachability index is suitable for measuring demountability at all levels within both utility projects and residential construction. For existing sustainability instruments such as GPR and BREEAM, it offers possibilities for the integration of the detachability aspect. After all, demountability is an important precondition for passing on building products and materials to subsequent cycles.
The index examines four aspects that influence the detachability of building elements: the type of connections with which they are attached, the accessibility of those connections, possible traverses by, for example, installations, and the shapes in which the elements are included. The index also applies a weighting factor related to the scores on the MPG (Environmental Performance of Buildings) system. For elements with a higher environmental impact, this creates an additional incentive to implement them as detachable as possible.
The index was created with the cooperation of the Central Government Real Estate Agency, ABN AMRO, Traject, de Architecten Cie and cepezed. Five buildings were tested in practice, including Circl, HOTT and Galileo. Of cepezed, the Amsterdam Temporary Courthouse and The Green House in Utrecht were reviewed. Both buildings scored well over eighty percent. The detachability index will be available to everyone and will continue to evolve in practice.
