In Circ-Boost’s Serbian pilot, a new milestone has been achieved in designing fully demountable steel structures for circular construction.
A moment-resisting beam-to-column steel joint – engineered for disassembly and reuse – was experimentally tested at the University of Belgrade’s Laboratory for Structures. Its performance was evaluated for moment resistance, rotation capacity and stiffness, failure behaviour, and most importantly – demountability for reuse.
The joint was developed from a combination of reclaimed and new steel, with test samples manufactured by Evrobrod doo and GrappS ad Smederevo.
The work didn’t stop there. In September 2025, this innovation was shared with global experts at the International Colloquium on Stability and Ductility of Steel Structures (SDSS 2025) in Barcelona.
Dr. Isidora Jakovljevic presented the paper “Moment-resisting beam-to-column joints in reusable building structures”, co-authored by Jelena Dobric, Nina Gluhovic, and Milan Spremic.
Backed by detailed numerical simulations, this research highlights how traditional steel connections can be reimagined for circular construction – offering new reuse potential in future buildings.
The joint is being developed for use in the 3R Modular Pilot House under construction in Belgrade as part of Pilot 3.
Led by: University of Belgrade, Faculty of Civil Engineering of Civil Engineering
