The new recycling center located in the Juch site in Zurich-Altstetten will include a large hall for delivery, sorting and collection of the recycled goods as well as an administration and personnel area. The project will be implemented as a pilot project not only for the reuse of components, but also for the employment of new BIM methodologies.
The original architectural competition challenged participants to produce a project with the highest possible proportion of reused components. To this end, Zirkular, in collaboration with the City of Zürich’s Department for Buidling (AHB) and the Waste Disposal + Recycling Zürich (ERZ), developed a digital component catalog with components from the city’s properties, which served as the basis for the competition.
Zirkular is now supporting the winning team Graber Pulver Architekten as specialist planners in the development of the project and in the coordination of the search for reused components. In addition to an existing hall structure, which will be dismantled and rebuilt 1:1 at the new location with minor adaptations, existing reinforced concrete slabs will be utilized for both the hall floor and the operations building.
If you compare the greenhouse gas balance of the winning project with that of a conventional new building, the result is a savings of almost 600 tons of CO2, or a good 40% less. The construction costs are estimated at around CHF 18 million. The new recycling center is scheduled for completion at the end of 2026.
Execution: Graber Pulver Architekten

