The aim of this web site is to provide tools that will lead to greater reuse of steel components in construction. There are 4 ways of using recycled or reclaimed steel in a project:
- Use structural steel with a high recycled material content in the project - Virtually all steel has some recycled content and mills can advise on how much.
- When renovating a project reuse the existing structure and possibly add or extend it - This is relatively commonly done with steel structures as they are easily adapted.
- Move most or all of an existing steel building to a new location – This occurs for pre-engineered buildings such as industrial buildings and warehouses, and occasionally for other building types.
- Reuse individual steel component extracted from the demolition of one project in a new building - This is not yet common other than the use of reclaimed steel sections in shoring work.
The following section provide more background information.
Background
The construction industry
The Steel Construction Industry
Steel Reuse
Demolition and Deconstruction
Waste Hierarchy
Definitions