The DISRUPT project – Delivering Innovative Steel ReUse ProjecT – is being steered by Alliance for Sustainable Building Products, which has secured Innovate UK funding to prove that steel reuse has a major role to play in mitigating climate change.

Its value chain team also includes steel reuse experts and stockholders Cleveland Steel and Tubes  and the National Federation of Demolition Contractors and is supported by developer Grosvenor Group.

Although commonly recycled at end of life, the reuse of steel is minimal despite the apparent environmental, carbon and circular economy benefits.

The project aims to deliver new costed circular business models that can act as a blueprint for other firms interested in entering the reuse sector, ultimately to achieve a greater supply of reused steel into the marketplace.

A detailed feasibility study will be undertaken focusing on real-life case studies which track the ‘journey’ of reused steel from start to finish, providing a rich data source covering different sizes and types of projects.

Previous studies have shown that there are barriers to reuse including economic factors, supply chain issues, availability, and lack of demand.

Richard Broad, DISRUPT Project Manager, said: “New business models are required to ensure that the benefits of steel reuse are accrued across the value chain and underpin the activities of existing and new actors.

“If steel reuse is to become mainstream, it is imperative that new business models are profitable and equitable to the whole value chain, and that reused steel is readily available and easy to specify within construction projects.”