Reuse Innovation Center
The ReUse Innovation Center
A Circular Business Cooperative
The reuse industry consists of small businesses and nonprofits who face the struggle of high operational costs, unstable supply and demand, and economies of scale. Re-Use Innovation Centers (RICs) are the solution to these problems. Re-Use Innovation Centers pool the resources of multiple reuse businesses into a single facility where they can work together in a synergistic way, allowing them to ‘complete’ each other instead of ‘competing’ with each other.
How It Works
A variety of activities take place at Centers in order to follow salvaged material from initial arrival to value added goods. RICs consist of intake areas where material is priced and inventoried, workshops where material is transformed into value added goods, showrooms where goods can be displayed, warehouses and lumberyards where raw material can be bought, as well as classrooms and repair spaces where skill and job training occur.
Expanding Community Impact and Industry Support
Re-Use Innovation Centers aim to encourage more reuse, repair, and remanufacturing in communities, alleviate stresses faced by individuals in the reuse industry, stimulate cross-collaboration for value-added products, train people in useful trade skills, and create a one-stop reuse shop.
Innovating Waste: Building a Circular Future
At the forefront of innovation, we are redefining how materials flow through the built environment. By targeting the waste stream, we transform discarded resources into valuable assets, exemplifying Industrial Symbiosis in action. Our cutting-edge Post-Fab Panels and strategic wishlist approach connect surplus materials with new opportunities, ensuring nothing goes to waste. Beyond products and strategies, we practice what we promote—constructing our own buildings with reclaimed materials to showcase the power of circular design.