Circular Economy in the Built Environment: Designing, Deconstructing, and Leasing Reusable Products

This article summarizes the efforts and opportunities associated with the implementation of a circular economy (CE) approach in the built environment. The CE model has emerged as an environmentally-responsible alternative to the prevalent linear consumption model. While the design and construction sector that literally shapes the built environment is currently responsible for the largest share of landfill waste, the CE approach proposes the disassemble and reuse of products and components from buildings and facilities in contrast with their current demolition and landfill disposal. In support of CE, design for disassembly (DfD) enables the future disassembly (or deconstruction) of the built assembly with the ultimate goal to facilitate the reuse of their components or products. Complementarily, product-service systems (PSS) model represents an innovative shift from selling products to selling services. Both concepts are investigated and discussed at large in this article as fundamental resources in support of the challenging implementation of CE in the built environment.