INCLUDING CIRCULAR VALUE PROPOSITIONS IN BUSINESS PORTFOLIO: EXAMPLES FROM SWEDISH AEC COMPANIES

Paper in proceeding, 2023

The growing attention on circularity has increased focus on business solutions associating the short-term financial interest of the construction industry to maintain or increase economic prosperity with a longer-term focus on environmental and economic sustainability. Numerous researchers and consultants have forecasted and modelized the potential of these new opportunities. However, in practice, it seems difficult for many AEC companies to transform this potential into concrete implementation, and they struggle to apply circular thinking to their business. Our purpose is therefore to explore, document and analyse how a few companies have succeeded to be recognised as the forerunners of circularity. To do so, we build on the frame of circular business models which describe the organisational and financial ‘architecture’ of a business and the concept of legitimacy to analyse our results. Drawing on material collected in more than 40 companies, our method includes interviews, workshops, and ethnographic work. The two companies presented here illustrate a decoupling between moral and managerial legitimacy, enabling them to benefit from the green economy with rather moderate applications of circular principles in their business models.