CAA2 Study trip

Visit to the Green Marine factory

December 11th 2024 13:00-15:00
📍Green Marine factory

Indrek Kajakas (Board Member, Green Marine AS)
“Construction Waste – Problem or Potential?”
Green Marine AS is a waste management company focused on promoting circular economy practices in construction. The company aims to significantly enhance the recycling and reuse of hazardous and problematic waste through innovative developments in environmental technologies.
greenmarine.ee/teenused/ehitusjaatmed/

Study trip: Brussels

January 29-31 2025

The architectural study trip organized by the Estonian Centre for Architecture (Eesti Arhitektuurikeskus) will visit the best examples of contemporary circular architecture in Brussels. Over the past two decades, re-use and re-cycling have become an important part of the city’s architectural policy, embraced by both the public and private sectors, and inspired by the recently concluded term of Brussels’ Bouwmeester* Kristiaan Borret. Circular architecture has played a central role in the city’s spatial design in recent years, manifesting itself in the re-use and recycling of materials in construction, the preservation of existing structures, and the future valorization of adaptive reuse in the design of new buildings.l.

*The role of the Bouwmeester Master Architect (BMA) for the Brussels-Capital Region is to promote the spatial quality of urban projects in Brussels from an independent position.

 

JANUARY 29th ITINERARY

ROTOR, site visit to Rotor DC
Rotor DC (Deconstruct) is a design studio and side project of Rotor DB, focused on the re-use, dismantling, upcycling, and trading of construction elements and building waste. Since 2012, Rotor has documented existing used building materials dealers in Belgium and neighboring countries, collecting knowledge on the platform opalis.eu; opalis.eu/en; rotordc.com; rotordb.org/en.
Architect Tom Schoonjans will present the major project led by Rotor DC, FCRBE (Facilitating the Circulation of Reclaimed Building Elements), which aims to increase the volume of reused construction materials in circulation by 50% by 2032 in the region. The project focuses on France, Belgium, and the UK, with activities also involving the Netherlands, Ireland, and Luxembourg. Guide materials and pilot projects have been developed within the framework of the project.
rotordb.org/en/projects/interreg-nwe-fcrbe

BC Architects, site visit: Usquare Brussels Research Centre
The universities of Brussels, ULB and VUB, opened a new international research center in February 2024, focusing on the transfer of knowledge about sustainable construction and sector innovation. BC Architects’ project paid special attention to the dismantling of materials and the re-use of building elements, as well as the use of bio-based materials, such as specially reinforced hemp and cork-based acoustic clay plaster and hempcrete made from Brussels soil.
The visit will be led by architect Emile Deroose.
bc-as.org/projects/usquare-feder

To be confirmed: ICI Architects or Bento Architecture, studio visit
iciarchitectes.be/project/decoster/ või bento.archi

 

JANUARY 30th ITINERARY

BC Architects & Materials & Studies
Seminar and Workshop “Building with Earth”
9:30 – 16:30

The workshop and seminar will be led by Nicolas Coeckelberghs, co-founder of BC Architects & Materials & Studies.

  1. Tour of the Materials Site and Showroom (1 hour)
    • Overview of geo-based materials at the BC Materials site.
    • Introduction to the production process and technology of building materials, from raw clay to various soil-based building material samples
  2. Practical Task – Carazas Test (2 hours)
    • A hands-on test where participants can experiment with different soil and fiber mixtures. Using test specimens, a matrix is created that provides insight into various soil-based construction solutions.
  3. Loeng: “Unfired earth as a contemporary building material” (1h)
    • Characteristics of clay as a sustainable building material.
    • Presentation of historical and contemporary architectural examples using soil-based building materials.
  4. Practical Workshop – Soil Test Specimens (2 hours)
    • Active participation in creating samples of clay plaster & rammed earth or collaborative construction of an earth wall.

 

JANUARY 31st ITINERARY

Ouest Architecture
Site visit: Zinneke
This project, the transformation of a former printing house into a creative workshop center, focused on the preservation of the building’s existing structures and their reorganization and optimization. The project was completed in collaboration between ROTOR and Ouest architects, and besides dismantling and reusing materials and elements, community co-creation played an important role.
ouest.be/index.php/portfolio-items/zin

AgwA
Site visit: Karrevel d School
This project by the architectural office AgwA involved the re-use of building elements during the reconstruction of a former pharmaceutical office and production building into a secondary school.

To be Confirmed: 51N4E Site Visit to ZIN in No(o)rd
51n4e.com/projects/zini