How does the philosophy of outgrowth affect sustainable building?

Economy must adhere to ecological limits

'De-growth' is a term that emerged in the 1970s but is only now, with increasing environmental degradation, beginning to become a broader trend. Some parts of it are having an increasingly visible effect on industry and construction.

What does the philosophy of outgrowth entail?

The philosophy of degrowth, also known as degrowth, is a critical approach to the traditional paradigm of continuous economic growth. Rather than seeking to increase GDP at all costs, degrowth promotes limiting consumption, minimizing waste and protecting natural resources.

De-growth promotes sustainable development, where the economy must adhere to ecological limits and human needs must be met in a just and responsible manner. In practice, this means striving to reduce energy consumption, promoting local and ecological products and implementing solutions that reduce our carbon footprint.

Outgrowth in construction

Federico Savini, associate professor of environmental planning at the University of Amsterdam stresses that economic growth, which has a dramatic impact on the environment, is now not improving quality of life. On the contrary, social and environmental problems are increasingly emerging, especially in cities. The expert emphasizes that "in a city like Amsterdam, psychological problems, such as loneliness, stress and burnout, have only increased in the last decade, while the quality of life has decreased."

With respect to the construction industry, de-growth occurs at every implementation stage of an investment plan: from designing smaller, more energetically effective facilities, to limiting the use of building materials, reducing losses and increasing the pressure on the use of technologies with a small environmental impact. 

Renovation and revitalization as an example of reducing waste

Within construction, de-growth is primarily an attempt to improve and adapt the already existing building. Instead of demolishing and erecting new buildings, we do our best to adapt them to the changing needs of the users. 

"This means we are committed to the renovation and revitalization of buildings; two conceptual elements of sustainable construction. Modifying and improving buildings is much safer for the planet than to demolish them, which leads to an accumulation of waste. Renovation and revitalization as a process are also significantly more energy-saving than completely demolishing and repurposing a lot."

We are very familiar with this trend regarding building renovation, explains Ralph van der Kooij, Sales Manager at Aluprof Nederland BV. "The narrow profiles used in windows of the MB-Slimline system have long been popular with investments aimed at renovating historic and monumental buildings. They are a perfect imitation of old windows with steel profiles, matching the appearance of the façade to its historic state, but at the same time they make it possible to improve the thermal insulation of windows and glass partitions. We have used this system in the renovation of facilities such as Weir Mill, Crusader Mill and the hotel in the old Bodmin prison in the United Kingdom and also at the 'Koszyki' market hall in Poland," he says.

Closed loop 

The second de-growth trend in construction is the pursuit of designing buildings with a closed loop, i.e., the facility can be fully reused even after the end of its life cycle. This requires implementation of modern recycling methods and application of building materials and technologies that allow the creation of such a cycle. 

Both glass and aluminum are perfect examples of materials that are fully aligned with the closed-loop concept. They are fully recyclable and, unlike many other materials such as wood and concrete, can be processed into the same material. Thus, old becomes new again and can be used again. 

The main property of aluminum in the context of de-growth is its recyclability. Aluminum can be recycled infinitely and without loss of quality, making it an exceptionally sustainable material. In construction, the use of recycled aluminum reduces CO₂-emissions significantly and reduces the need for natural resources.

Aluprof sees the potential of glass - a complementary good for aluminum facade systems - and also invests heavily in development in this area. Proof of this is the Glassprof brand, which is responsible for the production of fire-resistant glass in classes EI 30, EI 60 and EI 90, as well as insulating glass. 

These are not the only products that Aluprof manufactures in accordance with the closed-loop concept. The walls with studs and joists in the MB-MT50N system are also designed based on Cradle to Cradle certification guidelines. All versions of this system guarantee low heat permeability of the facade, and walls in the MB-MY50N SI system have even obtained the Passive House certificate from the Passive House Institute. This is the same certificate previously obtained by the popular windows and doors of the MB-104 Passive system. 

Control the climate, control the costs

The philosophy of de-growth, with its emphasis on consumption reduction and sustainable growth, is having a significant impact on contemporary construction. The use of sustainable, ecological materials such as aluminum and glass, and the drive to increase the energy efficiency of buildings, is helping to create much more sustainable and environmentally friendly living spaces.

Aluprof recognizes the need to increase control over both environmental exploitation and the cost of construction investments. The company emphasizes in its latest campaign "Control the climate, control the costs," supported by well-known international referee Szymon Marciniak, "We play fair with nature.