Digital Construction for a circular economy

The construction industry accounts for over 40 percent of global CO₂ emissions – an enormous lever for climate protection. The Chair of Digital Design and Fabrication (DDF) professorship at KIT, headed by Prof. Moritz Dörstelmann, is developing revolutionary approaches for sustainable construction: by digitally reinterpreting historic craft techniques, entirely new construction methods are emerging that rely on locally sourced, renewable materials. The interdisciplinary team blends traditional timberframe principles with modern manufacturing technologies to create hybrid load-bearing structures made of wood, willow-clay composite and flax fibers. Computerbased design workflows and AI-supported planning tools allow the assessment of complex interactions already during the design phase. Consequently, not only structural aspects are taken into account, but also complete material cycles – from rewetting
degraded peatlands and cultivating willow to lowenergy onsite processing. This holistic approach diversifies the portfolio of renewable building resources and reduces dependence on wood as the primary construction material. This paves the way for a circular economy in construction while unlocking an entirely new architectural design repertoire.