Description of the project
In December 2001, the UPC signed an agreement with JG Ingenieros SA within the framework of the University Chair – Company figure with the aim of promoting the implementation of sustainability concepts and intelligent solutions applied to buildings, subjects of vital importance to ensure that technological progress makes buildings more livable and functional, so that they are less aggressive for the environment.
The idea of the present project is included in a long-term plan defined by the Construction Engineering Department of the ETSEIB with which it is intended to provide Engineers with the appropriate tools so that they are able to implement new constructive solutions that improve the sustainability and intelligence of buildings.
A fundamental pillar of this plan is the study of Smart Buildings, both in terms of the analysis of current market solutions that allow improving energy efficiency and the level of interior comfort, as well as the monitoring of the equipment that integrates the facilities facilities of a building as well as analysis of the data generated to optimize its performance.
Buildings are the place where people spend most of the day and are responsible for more than 40% of the total energy consumption in the European Union, a consumption that is in a phase of expansion and that will predictably increase as well CO2 emissions. It is possible to reverse this trend as well as improve the comfort and experience of users inside the building through the deployment of technological solutions that reduce the energy consumed by buildings, as well as their environmental costs, while optimizing the management of resources and improving the quality of life in our cities. On the other hand, in March 2020, the European Commission approved the new action plan for the Circular Economy, based on the work carried out in 2015. The construction sector is one of the sectors identified as key in the transition towards a Circular Economy, both because of its high impact on the consumption of materials and generation of waste, and because of its high impact throughout the useful life of the buildings, especially in relation to energy consumption, as well as the origin of its raw materials and their destination at the end of the building's useful life. This implies rethinking the entire linear process that we have been applying in the way we conceive the design and use of the building. The challenges in managing the design and the construction process to modify this "linear" scheme are high, and new technologies and digital tools become essential when reformulating the approach from sustainability and the circular economy .
Concepts such as the BAMB (Buildings As Material Banks), which seeks the reuse, recycling and enhancement of the materials used in buildings, as well as the prevention of waste in the construction and demolition of buildings, the reduction of the consumption of virgin natural resources and the development of processes that allow the transition to a circular economy through industrial symbiosis, are becoming more and more familiar. The integration of complementary frameworks of added value such as material passports and the design of "reversible" buildings or "dry" building design, can shed light on new alternative methodologies to the conventional and linear design of the building, also allowing to integrate the concept of "flexibility" of the building that would extend its useful life either as a joint structure. This reformulation of methodologies and processes under the comprehensive approach of sustainability and circular economy will involve planning activities from research to the introduction of the project in the market, and the organization of circular value chains in the industries of the sector , will also give rise to new commercial or business models with strategic alliances.
In general, the candidate will develop the study based on the following structure:
1. Determination of the state of the art of circular economy innovations in the Construction sector.
2.Analysis of methodological and digital tools for the implementation of sustainability criteria in the sector, and characterization of how companies position themselves in this area.
3. Classification of the solutions applied by type of building (or built-up part).
4. Definition of the interaction of the solutions applied in the same project.
5. Methodological definition for the integration of the solutions applied to a project from the design phase and throughout its life cycle.
6. Use of *BIM as an integrating platform for sustainability and circular economy solutions.
7. Verification and implementation of the pilot project.
