This year, the Concrete Innovations Prize is awarded to “an innovative and commendable building or construction project where the concrete is used with a focus on the greatest possible sustainability.” It is Dansk Beton, part of Dansk Industri, that awards the prize.
In 2023, the jury has nominated Fremtidens Gårdhave, Børnehuset Svanen and Lisbjerg Recycling Station for the Concrete Innovations Award 2023. Voting can be done via Dansk Beton’s website until 15 May.
Lisbjerg Recycling Station
Lisbjerg Genbrugsstation in Aarhus gets the following words on the road from jury member Julian Weyer, who is an architect and partner in C.F. Møller Architects:
Lisbjerg Genbrugsstation has been nominated for the Concrete Innovations Award because the building is an innovative, tangible example of the potential of recycling building materials such as concrete and wood into new wholes. Recycled materials have been used wherever possible, and the concrete used has been handed in by the recycling station’s customers and then crushed and reused in the construction. In total, reused and recycled materials make up approx. 75 per cent of the project, and at the same time both aesthetics, landscape adaptation and also future flexibility have been considered in the design, writes Julian Weyer.
The Cortyard of the Future
Fremtidens Gårdhave in Copenhagen is also nominated. Jury member Tine Kjærulff Bay, architect and creative director at Gottlieb Paludan Arkitekter, writes about that project:
The courtyard of the future demonstrates in an elegant way how necessary rainwater solutions can be combined with a beautiful, recreational and sensual courtyard space. The residents of the square have been involved in the design and have achieved a common space where they can get close to nature with rippling water, biodiversity and wildlife. The courtyard invites you to play, stay, get together, grow your own vegetables, etc. and is designed particularly strongly architecturally and aesthetically. One has, among other things, used concrete with 100 per cent coarse recycled aggregate in a combination with recycled paving stones, pavement tiles and slate tiles. It is an innovative project within concrete with substitution of natural aggregate with recycled coarse aggregate, as constructions are carried out in an extra aggressive environmental class, which is the first time in Denmark, writes Trine Kjærulff Bay.
The Svanen Children’s House
The Svanen children’s house in Gladsaxe is the last nominated project. Property director at PensionDanmark and jury member, Marius Møller, justifies the nomination as follows:
The Svanen children’s home is nominated for the Betoninnovation Award because the project is innovative in creating a circular children’s home by reusing materials from the former Gladsaxe School, which in terms of architecture and content are able to integrate children into nature and experiences. A total of 6,000 tonnes of concrete from the old school has been crushed. Of this, 600 tonnes were used as coarse aggregate in the new concrete in the Children’s Home’s foundation, and load-bearing structures and cut columns were used for furniture in the ground. The concrete has thus been given a new lifespan and lives on in the house. Recycling of concrete, bricks, roof tiles, wooden rafters etc. in the house, which in the architecture is designed like a village, helps to show the children how we can recycle materials in everyday life. The orphanage also has a strong focus on social and societal sustainability with space for children with special needs, writes Marius Møller.
Everyone can vote
Everyone can vote for the Concrete Innovations Award 2023 until 15 May.
The winner of the Betoninnovations Prize will be announced at the Concrete Prize Festival on 1 June 2023 in Industriens Hus, where the winners of the In-situ Prize, the Concrete Element Prize and the Concrete Architecture Idea will also be announced.
You can read more about the award and the projects on Dansk Beton’s website, where you can also cast your vote.
