Circular economy pop-up: recycling structural components and other items from apartment building in Kallio, Helsinki

SATO and the Helsinki Metropolitan Area Reuse Centre are organising a circular economy experiment aiming to recycle good-condition structural components and other items salvaged from an apartment block due to undergo renovation in Helsinki’s Kallio district at Castréninkatu 3. The items will be sold at the Reuse Centre online store from 4 October.

SATO and the Helsinki Metropolitan Area Reuse Centre are piloting the salvaging of structural components and other items for reuse directly from an apartment building that is due to undergo renovation. The circular economy pop-up organised this autumn is part of the Circular Construction in Regenerative Cities (CIRCuIT) project.

The experiment entails salvaging structural components and apartment items such as doors, cold appliances, wardrobes and coat hooks that are in good condition from a SATO-owned 1930s apartment building in the Kallio district of Helsinki. The Reuse Centre will uninstall and inspect the items to be sold, ensuring that they are suitable and safe for recycling.

The items can be bought from the Reuse Centre online store from Monday 4 October and picked up from the site at Castreninkatu 3 on Fridays in October. The renovation of the building begins in January 2022.

Circular economy projects seeking efficient ways to salvage usable items for reuse

“We want to promote circular economy at our demolition and renovation sites and maximise the salvaging of usable structural components, materials and other items for reuse,” says SATO Corporate Responsibility Advisor Tiina Lehti.  

SATO and the Helsinki Metropolitan Area Reuse Centre co-organised their first recycling event in Oulunkylä, Helsinki, last autumn, where items such as home appliances, light fittings and doors from an apartment block due to be demolished were offered at reasonable prices or for free. The event attracted interest and the items were recycled efficiently. Efficiency is the main strength of a circular economy event organised on site: selling or giving away items directly from a demolition site eliminates the costs and hassle of storing the items. The event helped to avoid 20,000 kg of CO2 emissions by recycling structural components and other items.

“We’re taking part in the promotion of recycling at demolition sites in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area. We provide cities and organisations with free audits of properties scheduled for demolition or renovation where we survey the structural components and other items that can be recycled. We’re testing best practices for salvaging structural components for recycling as well as their demand among reusers”, says Jenni Särmä from the Reuse Centre.

For more information please contact:

SATO Corporation, Tiina Lehti, Corporate Responsibility Advisor, phone: +358 40 777 6749, tiina.lehti@sato.fi

Helsinki Metropolitan Area Reuse Centre, CIRCuIT Project, Jenni Särmä, Designer, phone: +358 400 348 179, jenni.sarma@kierratyskeskus.fi

SATO is one of Finland's leading rental housing providers. SATO aims to offer a comprehensive choice of rental housing and an excellent customer experience. At year-end 2020, SATO owned nearly 26 800 apartments in Finland's largest growth centres and in St Petersburg.

We promote sustainable development and initiative through our operations and work in open interaction with our stakeholders to generate added value. We operate profitably and with a long-term view. We increase the value of our housing stock through investments, divestments and repairs.

SATO Group's net sales in 2020 were EUR 303,4 million, operating profit EUR 179,6 million and profit before taxes EUR 129,5 million. The value of SATO's investment property is roughly EUR 4,8 billion.