Integration of Circular Economy Principles into Industrialised Construction: A Design Typology for Reusable Infrastructure

Political attention and concerns are growing around the decreasing resources and the low tendency to reuse, repair, refurbish, recycle, or recover existing infrastructure in the United Kingdom. Increased uses and successful applications of industrialised construction (IC) within factory production environments open opportunities for broader Circular Economy (CE) approaches, which can help redefine end-of-life of infrastructure as opposed to the traditional linear approach that focuses on disposal and demolition. Considerable proportion of infrastructure being built is believed to be disjointed from CE, and the provision of the same would transform the ways we interact with infrastructure in its physical end-of-life. An industry-wide transition in offsite/industrialised construction depends to a large extent on the degree to which systems being used can be standardised in line with established CE principles. The aim of this project is to explore existing CE practices that can support production systems in creating quality factory-built reusable infrastructure. The project is expected to provide insight into our extant knowledge of the intersection between industrialised and circular economy approaches in construction. The PhD aims to develop and implement an IC CE design typology that can enable manufacturers, suppliers, contractors, and/or integrators to better evidence CE principles in their industrialised infrastructure solutions. 94% of Loughborough’s research impact is rated world-leading or internationally excellent. REF 2021

The standard University IELTS English language requirement is 6.5 overall with 6.0 in each individual element (reading, writing, listening and speaking).

International students: £29,500

UK students: £5,238

UK/Home: £5,238

International: £29,500

October 2026, February 2027, July 2027

31 December 2026

• Loughborough, United Kingdom