“TECNALIA validates a robotic prototype to sort materials and move towards zero waste in collaboration with RECSO”
Smart construction waste management: a key challenge for the sector’s sustainability
The construction sector accounts for 36% of waste in the EU and is the largest consumer of mineral and non-renewable resources. Reducing this impact is a priority in order to move towards a more sustainable and circular model.
Technological innovation to transform waste management
TECNALIA is working with RECSO, in the framework of the European project called RECONMATIC, on the development and validation of digital and automated solutions for construction and demolition waste management.
One of these solutions is the robotic prototype that these organisations have put into operation in the facilities of Reciclados Sostenibles RECSO.
How the robot works
The system uses NIR hyperspectral techniques combined with AI to identify and sort mixed materials in the waste stream with higher precision than the human eye. This information activates an articulated arm that automatically sorts the materials, and this optimises the process and generates high-value recycled aggregates that replace natural ones.
Impact and future vision
This technology helps to reduce pressure on natural resources and the environmental footprint of the sector.
- As Javier Llorente, CEO of RECSO, points out, “these solutions allow us to think of buildings as material banks, encouraging reuse and bringing us closer to the goal of zero waste”.
- Inés Díez Ortiz, researcher at TECNALIA, explains that “by taking part in European projects, we are promoting the development of innovative technologies that improve the quality of secondary streams and provide greater added value”.
In the media
“This is the report on Castilla y León TV”