New European Bauhaus Prizes 2023

Initiative category

Identify the award category for which this initiative is being submitted
Shaping a circular industrial ecosystem and supporting life-cycle thinking

Email user
semsokalac91@gmail.com

Basic information
Initiative title
TOWARD GREEN MATERIALS

Full initiative Title
Application of aluminium as green metal in the construction industry

Please provide a short, catchy description of your initiative to be used in communication towards the public.
The aim of the project is to shift the construction industry from using traditional materials to green materials such as aluminium alloys where it is possible. The main problem, addressed from the side of experts in the field of the construction industry, is a lack of knowledge. Advantages: infinitely recyclable which needs very little energy to recycle, completely neutral in their effect on air, soil, and water quality, the tensile strength of steel, and 70% lighter than a steel structure.

What was the geographical scope of your intiative?
National

Where was your intiative implemented?
Member State(s) and Western Balkans
Montenegro

If relevant, insert names of region(s)/municipality(ies) involved
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Does your initiative address mainly urban or rural issues?
It addresses urban-rural linkages

Does your initiative refer to a physical transformation of the built environment or other types of transformations (hard or soft investments)?
It refers to a physical transformation of the built environment (hard investment)

Has your initiative benefited from EU programmes and/or funds?
No

Has your initiative won an EU prize with a monetary value awarded?
No

Does your initiative has a minimum level of maturity? The minimum level of maturity is exemplified by stakeholder/ initiative promoter commitment to implement the initiative in practice and a clear methodology /approach.
Yes

On whose behalf are you submitting the application?
As an individual
Please provide the contact details for the intiative promoter (the individual or representative of the organisation authorised to represent the intiative).
- First name: Semso
  Last name: Kalac
  Gender: Male
  Nationality: Montenegro
  Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: Mirka Banjevica no 31
  Town: Podgorica
  Postal code: 81000
  Country: Montenegro
  Direct Tel: +382 69 218 525
  E-mail: semsokalac91@gmail.com
Social Media accounts (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, etc.)
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In case my initiative is selected as a finalist of the NEB Prizes 2023, I agree to share the name (individual and/or organisation’s), email address, website and social media accounts indicated above with other NEB Prizes finalists. I also agree to publish the name (individual and/or organisation’s), website and social media accounts indicated above next to the public description of my initiative in the channels of the European Commission.
Yes

How did you hear about the New European Bauhaus Prizes?
Social Media

Description of the initiative
Please provide a summary of your initiative
This project aims to shift the construction industry in Montenegro from using traditional structural materials such as steel with a high carbon footprint to green materials such as aluminium alloys with a significantly lower carbon footprint and infinity recyclability where it is possible. The problem, addressed from the side of experts in the field of the construction industry, is a lack of knowledge and experience in the design and execution of aluminium structures.
Advantages of aluminium structures and alloys: infinitely recyclable which needs very little energy to recycle, completely neutral in its effect on air, soil, and water quality, the tensile strength of steel, 70% lighter than a steel structure, low costs or no costs for maintenance.
The way to achieve this aim is thru getting good practice in the application of aluminium structures, exchanging experiences and knowledge transfer as well as acquiring practical skills in the design of aluminium structures as there is a lack of experience in their application in Montenegro and Worldwide. This is achieved thru a research fellowship grant from the German Federal Foundation for sustainability for researcher and PhD student Semso Kalac. He is already half a year at the Technical University of Munich where is actively researching the application, design and execution of aluminium structures under the mentorship of prof. PhD Martin Menssinger and PhD Radlbeck. The knowledge transfer is organized thru direct communication and the exchange of ideas with supervisors, experimental testing of real models of aluminium structures and preparing guidelines for the design and execution of aluminium structures. The plan is to transfer knowledge in Montenegro to all interested parties in the process of designing and executing aluminium structures. The national stakeholders in this project are the Montenegrin Chamber of Engineers, the University of Montenegro and the University of Donja Gorica.

Please indicate the main themes of your initiative with 5 key words.
green materials

Please indicate the main themes of your initiative with key words
circular economy

Please indicate the main themes of your initiative with key words
knowledge transfer

Please indicate the main themes of your initiative with key words
light structures

Please indicate the main themes of your initiative with key words
aluminium

Please give information about the key objectives of your initiative in terms of sustainability and how these have been/will be met. Please highlight how the initiative can be exemplary in this context.
The key objective of these initiative is shifting construction industry from usage of traditional structural materials with high carbon footprint with green materials with low carbon footprint and high level of recyclability where is that possible. As main export of Montenegro are ingots made from aluminium alloys, in point of sustainability, taking also in consideration previously mentioned benefits, using local material as aluminium will have great benefit in terms of sustainability. That will reduce carbon foot print made by transportation, instead of importing steel and cement. On other side from view of rapid development and constant change, infinite recyclability of aluminium for which is needed 10% of energy compared to primary production is great benefit for sustainability and circular economy.

Please give information about the key objectives of your initiative in terms of aesthetics and quality of experience for people (through design, positive emotions and cultural benefits) and how these have been met. Please highlight how the initiative can be exemplary in this context.
As aluminium alloys can reach tensile strength of steel and they are 70% lighter than a steel structure, gaining knowledge in the area of design and execution of these structures will allow engineers and all interested parties to design more slender structures which give strong positive impressions on the people as future users of these structures. On the other side aluminium structures don't affect nature thru their exploitations period and they need low maintenance and no coating. These structures could be monumental things in Montenegro and gain new working opportunities for citizens, as now Montenegro is doing just primary production of aluminium alloys. Aluminum as structural material is widely used in other industries as automotive, aero, packaging industry and etc., on other side is not that widely used as construction material in construction industry due to its potential. These project could be great example with opportunity to be reused-reproduced for construction industry not only in Montenegro but in all other countries, not just neighboring countries but all around Europe. As this project is not just knowledge transfer, but includes scientific research. From new knowledge also the well developed Countries will have benefit.

Please give information about the key objectives of your initiative in terms of inclusion (ranging from accessibility and affordability for all to inclusive governing systems, design for all principles or new societal models) and how these have been met. Please highlight how the initiative can be exemplary in this context.
This project includes all engineers in the field of design, as civil engineer, mechanical engineers, architects and on other side investors, government representatives. For engineers and architects there is direct impact thru knowledge transfer to improve their competencies and for investors new opportunities how to invest more sustainable. For government representatives to make our environment more sustainable.

Please explain the way citizens benefiting from or affected by the initiative and civil society have been/will be involved in the initiative and what has been/will be the impact of this involvement on the initiative
Citizens will benefit in long term from this project in the way that they will live in a more sustainable environment and there will be more opportunities for employment.

Please explain how different stakeholders at various levels (local, regional, national, European) were engaged in the design and implementation of the initiative.
National stakeholders are included thru the University of Montenegro, University of Donja Gorica, and Montenegrin Engineering Chamber where the lectures and workshops will be held in order to make knowledge transfer. At Universities, knowledge transfer will be held for students as future engineers who will start a carrier in designing structures. At Montenegrin Engineering Chamber the knowledge transfer will be made for engineers, architects, and investors who are already in the field of the construction industry.

Please explain which disciplines and/ or knowledge fields were reflected in the design and implementation of your initiative. Please explain how representatives of these different fields interacted with each other, and what the added value of this process was
Knowledge fields that are reflected in this initiative are engineering and sustainable design. Construction design needs a multidisciplinary approach from various disciplines and stakeholders. That is why the initiative is not directly focused just on civil engineers who do calculations of structure, but on a wider broad of stakeholders, such as architects, investors, and government representatives.

Please highlight the innovative character of the initiative, when compared to mainstream actions in the field of the initiative
The innovative character of this initiative is that knowledge transfer is not done just in one direction, as it is usually. The researcher is at the same time a Ph.D. student doing research in the area of welded aluminium hollow section joints, a part which is not jet covered by European standards, Eurocodes. In this way, the researcher is obtaining existing knowledge from the Technical University of Munich and at the same time developing an approach for the calculation of welded hollow section joints which doesn't exist till now. In this way, this project has two-way knowledge transfer. From the Technical University of Munich to Montenegro existing knowledge about aluminium structures, and from Montenegro (Ph.D. research) to the European standards new way how to rationally calculate welded aluminum hollow section joints. The knowledge transfer will be made with the principle know-how, not just pure theory.

Please describe which elements of your initiative could be replicated or transferred to other places, groups of beneficiaries and contexts. This may involve, for example, aspects of the methodology, technology, processes, products, learnings, etc.
The knowledge transfer part which will be held in Montenegro could be easily replicated in any other Country, as construction with aluminum is something quite new and not still frequently used as it should be regarding all advantages of aluminum and its alloys as structural material.

Please describe the methodology or approach used in your initiative.
The methods that were used and will be used in this project are the following:
1. The analysis of available literature and knowledge transfer thru University courses and direct communication with supervisors who are experts in the design and execution of aluminium structures;
2. Numerical modelling of welded aluminium structures with the help of colleagues with experience in the field of designing aluminium structures;
3. Comparison among potential models for designing and execution of aluminium structures;
4. Experimental testing of the load-bearing capacity of welded aluminium samples and definition of influential
parameters for the load-bearing capacity of the joint;
5. Summarizing obtained results thru guidelines and knowledge transfer thru lectures, workshops and case studies at relevant institutions in Montenegro.

Please explain what kind of global challenges the initiative addresses by providing local solutions
This initiative supports sustainability of structures thru smart design and green materials. Construction with aluminium directly supports principle 3R.
Reduce- choosing lightweight materials, we reduce material for their construction.
Reuse- with aluminium structures thanks to easy extruded profiles, there are a lot of possibilities for modular design and construction, good way to reuse without recycling.
Recycle - as this is time of rapid change, recycling structures is very important step in their life circle. Aluminium has infinite recyclability with 10% of energy from initial production.
Also there could be found apart from the infinite recyclability of aluminium, why at the same time lightweight is important and listed among the priorities of the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action of Germany and how is connected to the environment in way of reducing CO2 emissions.

Please detail the scope of progress in the implementation of the initiative. This can include already demonstrated results/outputs related to the chosen Prizes category, and the already achieved benefits from the initiative for direct and indirect beneficiaries. This can also include a development plan of the initiative, with a particular attention to the steps envisaged in the year following the application, and including envisaged results and benefits from the initiative
Discussion and analysis of previous projects and research started with a detailed presentation of the experimental research conducted in Montenegro, followed by a discussion of possible research in Munich and the creation of a plan for it with some improvements to the previous plan and more detailed objectives. There has been made a list of potential contacts for various parts of the project. Contacts of experts for knowledge transfer from execution and design of aluminium structures outside of TUM, contacts for experts in numerical modeling, and experts for the production of aluminium products.
The part concerning research and knowledge transfer on TUM has been realized through lectures in the course "Construction with Aluminum" where the Ph.D. researcher is not just a passive listener but also actively participates in the lecture program as a part of the working group for light metal structures. Also, knowledge transfer is organized thru direct communication and the exchange of ideas with supervisors and experts from this field. Some meetings have been already arranged. Most meetings with external experts have been made via an online platform.
Creating a proper base for defining potential models for the design and execution of aluminium structures is achieved thru experimental research which is still ongoing and there is still work which have to be done. But on the other side, the results are clear and visible, and one of the best proofs is a submission of the abstract for the Scientific paper Experimental Research on Welded Aluminium X Joints (Fig. 7) for the International conference Eurosteel 2023 which will be held in Amsterdam and it is organized by TU Delft, ETH Zürich with partner ECCS. As could be seen in the part of knowledge transfer from Technical University Munich to a Ph.D. researcher there is visible progress. On the other side, the knowledge transfer part in Montenegro is a future activity that will be executed in the second part of 2023 year.

Please provide documents that demonstrate the maturity level of the initiative and commitment to implement the initiative in practice (e.g.: evaluation report, final or mid-term initiative report, certification, publications, building permit, grant agreement, letter of support, partnership agreement, etc.)
Both
PDF
Web link
If relevant, please describe how your initiative contributes to developing new competences, especially in the context of the European competence framework on sustainability.
This initiative fully complies with the European competence framework on sustainability as this project aims to shift the construction industry in Montenegro from using traditional structural materials such as steel with a high carbon footprint to green materials thru developing new competencies both in formal education (Universities) and informal education (Montenegrin Chamber of Engineers) and on the others side contributes with new scientific knowledge in the field of green materials. This initiative supports and fullfils all three actions which are stated in the European competence framework on sustainability:

- Equip learners and educators with the knowledge, skills and attitudes needed for a greener and more sustainable economy and society

- Help education and training institutions to integrate sustainability into teaching and learning and across all aspects of their operations

- Create a shared understanding on the deep and transformative changes needed in education and training for sustainability and the green transition
Please attach at least 6 high resolution images or visual representations of your initiative to your application.
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Yes

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Yes

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Yes

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Yes

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Yes

By submitting your application, you acknowledge that you read and understand that the ‘Guide to Applicants’ of the NEB Prizes 2023, available online in the website of the NEB Prizes 2023, is an integral part of this application form and that it must therefore be observed when completing and submitting your application.
Yes