Launched in 2022, Reincarnate is funded by the European Commission under the Horizon Europe research and innovation program. Cemex Poland, who joined the project last September, is the only representative of the building materials industry in this group.
Reincarnate is a research and development project focused on issues related to the circular economy. It seeks to develop technical and social measures that give new possibilities to buildings, building products and materials - thus maximising their life cycle and determining whether they are suitable for reuse.
Together with partner Mostostal Warszawa, Cemex is developing solutions to extend the life cycle of a building and thus reduce construction and demolition waste. The goal is to develop digital tools, i.e., BIM, to track materials, manage CDW (construction and demolition waste), and reduce CO2. PLGBC, the Polish Green Building Association, is also a partner in Poland.
Today, construction and demolition waste (CDW) accounts for up to 30% of all waste generated in the European Union. Although more than 75% is recycled, much valuable material is still in landfills. In the long term, the innovations developed in the project are estimated to reduce construction waste by 80% and reduce the CO2 footprint by 70% in the construction sector.
The Reincarnate project will develop the Reincarnate Circular Potential Information Model (CP-IM) platform. The data collected in the CP-IM will then serve as a source of technological innovation in areas such as building control and inspection, construction and dismantling planning, and CSD identification and classification.
The Reincarnate project will focus, in particular, on developing the required social innovations that will allow for the widespread application of circular concepts. The social innovations to be developed will be at the intersection of social-behavioural and economical solutions.
"We are very proud to see our operation in Poland join the Reincarnate project alongside businesses from across the world. We believe that collaborating with innovative businesses and industries is vital if we are to achieve our goal of operating as a net-zero organisation by 2050. We are excited to see what is developed as part of this partnership and the positive impact it will have on the more sustainable construction solutions available to our customers," said Ruediger Kuhn, VP of Materials Central Europe Cemex.
"Cemex Poland actively supports all initiatives whose goals are consistent with our global climate strategy, Future in Action." An example of such an initiative is the ambitious Reincarnate project, under which we intend to develop, among other things, concrete products with a low carbon footprint and the possibility of using recycled aggregates. We plan and digitise our processes and the information we provide, i.e., creating a materials database for the BIM model and digital delivery documents for our products.
"We are pleased that through our involvement in this venture we can share good practices and ideas with both Polish and foreign partners, as well as learn from their knowledge and experience. We are convinced that our cooperation will result in many innovations that will benefit the European industry in the future," says Michał Grys, director of the Materials Division and a member of the management board at Cemex Poland.
The Reincarnate project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon Europe research and innovation program under grant agreement No. 101056773.
The project is scheduled for completion in May 2026.
More information about the project: https://www.reincarnate-project.eu/
