Copenhagen
DfD modular façade
Location
Taastrupgaard, Copenhagen
Pre-fabricated DfD modular facade elements
Innovative solution
Vandkunsten
Partners Involved
Apartments, Housing
Building type
Timber
Structural material
Structural system
Modular prefabricated frame
Modular façades are becoming more widely used in construction, as pre-production (prefabrication) is much faster than conventional construction. Prefab construction is a popular choice due to increased efficiencies in construction, but the future of such structures are often disregarded with respect to reusability and recyclability, causing unnecessary negative environmental impacts. Modular façades are at large demountable from the structure they cover but usually the modules itself are not constructed to be disassembled.
This demonstration investigates existing prefab production methods to assess how well it aligns with design for deconstruction (DfD) principles. Alternative construction practices will be investigated and demonstrated should the model under investigation not yield reasonable methods for DfD.
Taastrupgaard is a suburb of Copenhagen where residential housing is going through major renovation, part of that is replacing the façades to improve insulation and indoor comfort of the apartments. The new façade modules will be prefabricated off-site, transported back and then mounted. These are majority made of timber products which are nailed together.
At present, the buildings are being renovated to cope with current construction standards. In the future there might be a similar need, why it is important to ensure – if it happens, or if there is a need to renovate/maintain part of the façade – that the materials can be disassembled for reuse and recycling.
The expected impacts
The proposed intervention will demonstrate high disassemblability with the goal to reach the target of 90%. A prolonged technical lifetime is expected to be demonstrated due to the simplifiedof maintenance of the façade.
Estimates will show cost impacts from intervention, LCC calculations are expected to prove potential cost savings to be demonstrated.
Activities done
The façade modules are being designed in collaboration with the developer and manufacturer. Mock-ups are created to test out different means of production to enable an increase DfD.
