Orchestrating Industry Transition: A case study of value chain collaboration strategies to enable urban mining in the Danish building industry

Abstract: Production of building materials is connected to a great deal of environmental degradation, and demand for materials is expected to increase. Currently, the construction industry is responsible for 23 % of the global GHG emissions, 40 % of the raw materials consumed globally, and 32 % of the waste generated in Europe. With urbanization and an increasing population, more buildings are needed in the future, leading to an increased demand for building materials. Meanwhile, high-value building materials are systemically downcycled, i.e. as road fill, leading to a significant loss of value. Urban mining (UM) is proposed as a solution, utilizing anthropogenic material waste streams to minimize virgin material input and the adverse effects connected to raw material extraction and material production. Business models for UM (BMUMs) are implemented in the building industry mainly at a small scale due to a combination of industry barriers, however, value chain (VC) collaboration is proposed as a key driver for overcoming them. Collaboration has mainly been investigated from a project-specific point of view, largely neglecting long-term partnerships across the VC, for example in the form of supply chain (SC) partnerships. This thesis applies an abductive research design, conducting in-depth case studies of two pioneering organizations working with BMUMs in the building industry: Lendager Group and Gamle Mursten. Based on these case studies the following research questions will be answered: RQ 1: How do the case companies organize their SC to facilitate BMUMs? RQ 2: What aspects are influential when developing and operating a collaborative strategy for UM? RQ 3: How can VC collaboration influence industry transition toward large-scale implementation of UM principles and reuse of building materials? The thesis finds that collaborative strategies vary depending on product characteristics and organizational goals. Partnerships are often developed fluidly with the implementation of incremental ad hoc initiatives. Building on an analytical framework put forward by Leising et al. (2018) the abductive analysis identified six important aspects of medium- and long-term VC collaboration: A shared vision for the future, Actor Learning, Network dynamics, and value creation, Business model innovation and inclusion, Automated action, and Optimal integration. The study argues that when engaging proactively with VC actors, companies may take the role of transition leaders by purposefully orchestrating the six collaborative aspects. A framework for how to do so is provided based on transition management theory. Further studies within BMUMs are suggested, exploring how organizational aspects influence the successful operationalization of UM principles, as the research area is understudied.