Use less stuff: system thinking and material reuse

Julian Broster, COO and co-founder at Civic, shares his insights on the possibilities of material reuse, following on from the BCO ESG Summit, in a piece first published by BCO here.

Steel from an Oxford Street department store, a university gym floor and slabs of Carrara marble – the story of future resilience is increasingly being written in reused materials. 

Tactics for material reuse are gaining momentum in existing assets, but just as important are sustainable approaches to new-build, implementing future-thinking and adaptability. 

It was a pleasure to be joined by Alan McBride at Muse, Rachel Hoolahan at Orms, Ben Myers at Morris & Company and my colleague Harriet Browning at Civic, for our panel at the BCO ESG Summit, exploring one central question: what does it mean to build using less and share more?  

We discussed how we can collectively overcome barriers, with logistics, fragmented supply chains and siloed thinking, amongst the backdrop of challenging development viability, cited as major hurdles. As Harriet noted, while “reusing structures can feel like it depends on the dogged determination from design teams," there are also many encouraging moves and initiatives like the Engineers Reuse Collective that are helping to scale collaboration. 

Designing for adaptability - whether through enhanced technical specifications, flexible layouts, or higher-quality materials - was shared as a way to futureproof assets. Our panel shared their honest reflections, and encouraged greater industry-wide discussion of successes and lessons learned. Planning policy, tax reform, and certification schemes were all also cited as levers for change.

Despite the challenges we face, broader optimism remains with a positive look to the future. The potential to reuse is enormous. But it requires a shift in mindset toward a more resourceful, resilient approach to design.

Continuing the theme of developments shifting the dial, we joined Landsec in sharing the story of The Republic as part of the ESG Summit walking tours. 

As the first building to come forward as part of the £1.5bn, 20-acre Mayfield regeneration, The Republic is a new 300,000 sq ft gfa office building set within Manchester’s multi-award-winning Mayfield Park. 

This green building, in colour and purpose, will be beside the River Medlock and is set to offer an unrivalled place to work in Manchester city centre, very close walking distance to Manchester’s biggest public transport hub, with market-leading environmental and wellbeing credentials.

Civic are providing civil, structural, geoconsultancy and transport engineering services, along with archaeology services through our heritage team, for The Republic, working in collaboration with a design team that includes architect Morris & Company, WSP and Deloitte.  

With high sustainability and carbon aspirations, The Republic will set the standard for good design when it comes to large new-build commercial buildings. 

It’s a landmark development here in Manchester and a milestone in the Mayfield regeneration, which is delivering transformational change. If you would like to hear more about the project or takeaways from our panel, please do get in touch.