Project Delivery and Logistics
This is the third paper in Pascall+Watson’s four-part insight series on Circular Economy in Transport Infrastructure, drawn from the Interchange 2026 Roundtable. Parts One and Two explored the foundational principles of the circular economy and the role of material passports. This paper examines the practical delivery challenges that arise when circular ambitions meet the realities of live infrastructure construction. Each paper in this series focuses on one of the four core themes discussed.
- – Project Delivery and Logistics
The principles are understood. The data frameworks are developing. But once a project moves on-site, the real test begins. Complex logistics, pressurised programmes, and deeply embedded delivery habits have historically meant that circular economy ambitions are among the first casualties when projects encounter the inevitable pressures of construction.
This paper examines what it genuinely takes to embed circularity into project delivery, not as a theoretical overlay, but as an integrated, practical, and commercially viable approach. The evidence from the roundtable is clear: it is possible. But it requires deliberate action, early integration, and the right people with the right skills in the right roles from the very beginning.
EMBED CIRCULARITY FROM THE BEGINNING
The complexities of implementing circular material flows increase substantially once a project moves on-site. Participants with direct delivery experience highlighted a consistent set of interconnected challenges: where to store recovered materials; how to access markets for those materials; how to sequence their reuse within the construction programme; and how to ensure that contractors have the information and certainty they need to plan effectively.
Storage emerged as a particularly acute constraint. In dense urban environments, where many major transport infrastructure projects are located, space is at a premium. Holding materials on or near the site for future reuse can quickly become logistically prohibitive. This challenge is compounded by the linear nature of much transport infrastructure: a railway or highway project spans a large geographic area, making centralised consolidation of recovered materials inherently difficult.
Consolidation centres, used effectively during major projects such as the London 2012 Olympics, were identified as a proven model for managing this interface between material supply and demand. Encouragingly, they appear to be finding renewed relevance in the most complex urban construction environments.
The most consistent message of this theme was unambiguous: circular economy principles must be built into the programme from the outset. If circular material recovery, pre-demolition audits, and secondary material procurement are not planned from inception, they will likely be squeezed out by delivery pressures. This is not a criticism of contractors or delivery teams; it is a structural reality of how construction programmes operate.
Contractors require predictability. They need to know what materials are available, in what condition, when, and through what process. Retrospectively introducing circular requirements into a live programme is consistently difficult, frequently impossible, and always more expensive. Early integration is the only viable approach.
“For circularity to work on projects, you need to think about the practicalities from the start, storage, sequencing, logistics and where materials are actually going next. Reuse is absolutely possible, but only if teams can properly plan and embed it early enough.”
Heather Evans | RLBMODULAR CONSTRUCTION AND DESIGN FOR DISASSEMBLY
Modular construction and design for disassembly were identified as two of the most significant practical enablers of circular delivery. When components arrive on site as a kit of parts from a factory environment, the recovery process, disassembly and reprocessing at the end of the asset’s life can be planned and executed with far greater precision and efficiency.
The kit-of-parts approach, applied during the design and construction of new infrastructure, can be replicated in reverse during the recovery phase: large components removed from the site, disassembled in a controlled factory environment, assessed, reprocessed, and returned to the market in a condition suitable for reuse. The quality of recovered materials is higher, the timeline is more predictable, and the commercial case is stronger.
On-site processing, enabling the immediate reprocessing of materials such as crushed concrete and aggregates, was identified as a further opportunity, particularly for projects of sufficient scale to justify the investment. The development of regional material hubs, operating on a just-in-time basis and supported by specialist trade partners, was proposed as a model to reliably make secondary materials available to infrastructure projects across a wider geography.
“If you think about the process in reverse, as you're bringing these large components onto site from a factory environment, when you're in the recovery phase, you are able to take them away in these kinds of component parts and then disassemble them in a factory environment and then repurpose them.”
Mark Wolfe | WSP
A LESSON FROM PAST PROJECTS
Network Rail was cited as a practical example of circular economy thinking already operating at scale in the transport infrastructure sector. The organisation has identified its highest-volume materials: ballast, steel, and concrete sleepers, and developed internal circular material flows around them. The principle is straightforward: understand what you use most, create the systems to recover and reuse it, and build that into your supply chain strategy.
The challenge for the wider infrastructure sector is to replicate this approach across asset owners and project types, moving from isolated pockets of good practice to a systemic, sector-wide model. Airport groups, national highways organisations, and rail infrastructure managers all use large volumes of similar, repeatable materials. The opportunity for shared circular material ecosystems across these organisations is significant and largely untapped.
“Within infrastructure, grouping those clients which use very similar materials and have very similar standards that apply can allow processes and supply chains to be replicated.”
Georgina Chamberlain | Buro HappoldSKILLS AND MINDSET
Participants were consistent in their view that the most significant barrier to the adoption of the circular economy in construction delivery is cultural, not technical. The sector’s default mode, focused on cost, speed, and established process, is not naturally conducive to the more complex, information-intensive, and collaborative approaches that circularity requires. Skills gaps exist, but mindset is the primary challenge.
New specialist roles were identified as essential: people with expertise in circular material flows, whole life value, and supply chain coordination, embedded within project delivery teams from the earliest stages. These individuals are the bridge between circular economy ambition and practical site delivery.
The language of sustainability was also identified as a barrier. Theory-heavy communication will not engage a programme manager under delivery pressure. Circular economy requirements need to be translated into practical, value-focused guidance that is relevant to the people responsible for delivering the project on the ground.
“The big things are mindset shifts. Rather than the actual skills. I mean, there are obviously skills gaps that will need addressing. It’s getting people to think differently, that would be the first most important thing…it can't be done by one party in isolation.”
Anthony Arkle | SkanskaCONCLUSION
In practice, delivering a circular economy in transport infrastructure is far less about proving the concept and far more about reshaping how projects are planned, coordinated, and executed from day one. The discussion makes clear that circularity cannot be retrofitted into live construction environments without cost, disruption, or failure; it must be embedded early, supported by logistics strategies, reliable material flows, and clear programme integration. Proven approaches such as consolidation centres, modular design, and asset-specific material loops demonstrate that workable models already exist, but their application remains inconsistent.
Scaling these successes requires stronger alignment across clients, supply chains, and project teams, particularly where common materials and standards create opportunities for shared systems. Yet the most decisive shift is cultural. Embedding circularity depends on reframing it from a sustainability aspiration into a delivery discipline, supported by new roles, clearer communication, and a focus on practical value. With the right structures, skills, and early-stage decisions in place, circular delivery is not only achievable but can become a reliable and repeatable part of infrastructure development.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- – Circular economy principles must be embedded in project programmes from inception. Retrospective integration consistently fails to deliver meaningful outcomes.
- – Storage, sequencing, and supply chain coordination are the most significant practical logistical challenges for circular material reuse in transport infrastructure.
- – Modular construction and design for disassembly significantly improve the predictability and quality of material recovery at the end of life.
- – New specialist roles, focused on circular material flows, whole life value, and supply chain coordination, are needed within project delivery teams from the earliest stages.
- – Mindset change is as important as technical training. Circular economy requirements must be communicated in practical, value-focused terms that resonate with delivery teams.
PART FOUR: REGULATORY AND PROCUREMENT FRAMEWORKS
What changes to policy, standards, and procurement practice are needed to move the sector from isolated good practice to systemic transformation?
CHAIRS |
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| Nimit Raval | Pascall+Watson | Associate: Sustainability |
| Eamon Nolan | Pascall+Watson | Project Director |
PARTICIPANTS |
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| Phanos Hadjikyriakou | 2050 Materials | Co-Founder & CEO |
| Paul Thompson | Assa Abloy | Head of Specification |
| Georgina Chamberlain | Buro Happold | Associate Director |
| Andrea Charlson | Concrete Centre | Senior Sustainability Specialist & Circular Economy Lead |
| Craig Holding | Dolphin Solutions | Client Relations Executive |
| Carl Waring | Frazer Nash | Principal Consultant |
| Paul Toyne | Grimshaw | Head of Sustainability |
| Rob Smith | Material Index | Managing Director |
| Julian Maynard | Maynard Design | Managing Director |
| Heather Evans | RLB | Partner – National Head of Sustainability |
| John Porter | SAS | Sector Development Manager |
| Anthony Arkle | Skanska | Head of Public Affairs |
| Neil O’Sullivan | Shay Murtagh | Group Business Development Manager |
| Mark Wolfe | WSP | Director, Aviation |
IMAGES & PLANNING |
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| Alberto Roa | Pascall+Watson | Marketing Manager |
| Kazz Kumar Williams | Pascall+Watson | Marketing Manager |