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Digitalization for Circular Construction (D4C^2)
Last Updated: 2026-02-05 16:08:46
Abstract
Students will learn about digital innovations for circular construction (e.g. reuse of materials) through hands-on learning: they will be accompanied on demolition sites to recover and reclaim building materials, they will learn how to use computational tools to design structures with an available stock of materials, and they will use digital fabrication techniques to build a dome on campus.
Objective
The project has several goals: •Teach students about the challenges of reuse in the built environment and how to overcome them in order to transition the construction sector from a linear to a circular economy – this can only be done through the proposed industry collaboration and hands-on, on-site learning. •Show students how to design and built from A to Z: many engineering and architecture students end up acquiring amazing design skills, but have never been on a demolition site to disassemble the structure themselves – this course will offer this experience to them. •Demonstrate how we can bring together two worlds that are often too distinct: low-impact construction and digital innovation – this course will explore which digital tools already used in other sectors could be beneficial for reuse and low-carbon construction.
Content
This is a workshop-based course on circular construction on-site. During the first workshop, students will use photogrammetry from drone imagery and LiDAR scanning to capture data on building materials; Scan-to-BIM techniques for geometric reconstruction based on point-clouds; and computer-vision techniques for identifying material geometries, types, and conditions in order to make an inventory of available materials. During the second workshop, my industry partners (e.g., Baubüro in situ, Materiuum, Rotor) and I will work with the students on the disassembly of the building in a non-destructive way. During the third workshop, students will learn to use computational design tools to structurally optimize their structure’s shape with the available stock of materials. Finally, during the fourth workshop, students will build a dome structure with the reclaimed materials on the ETH campus. This class will enable students to explore all digital tools available (assessment, disassembly, design, and reassembly) for circular construction on a real-world case study.
Resources
Lecture Notes
Workshop-based course & hands-on learning.
Literature
Sustainability – Circular Economy in the Digital Age special issue Çetin, S., De Wolf, C., Bocken, N. “Circular Digital Built Environment: An Emerging Framework.” 13, 6348, DOI: 10.3390/su13116348
General Information
- Language
- English
- Levels
- BSC , MSC
- Frequency
- Yearly recurring
Examination
- Type
- graded semester performance
Registration & Places
- Signup End
- 01.05.2022
Course Components
| Type | Title | Time & Place | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| practical/laboratory course |
Digitalization for Circular Construction (D4C^2)
Block course in June 2022 incl. on-site deconstruction workshops in Switzerland. Exact course dates will be published as soon as possible. Meanwhile, interested students are kindly asked to block the entire month of June 2022 in their calendar. MIBS students: 3rd semester on higher are eligible to apply.
|
No time listed | 120 h semesterly |
Offered In
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Electives (This is only a short selection. Other courses from the ETH course catalogue may be chosen. Please consult the "Richtlinien zu Projekten, Praktika, Seminare" (German only), published on our website ( ).)
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