Swegon is leading the way in implementing reuse of indoor climate products on an industry scale. These efforts demonstrate how the real estate sector can significantly reduce its climate impact without compromising either performance or quality. Swegon’s circularity concept was fully implemented for the first time in autumn 2025, delivering substantial embodied carbon savings.
The first full circular project was carried out across multiple buildings in central Sweden. Many of the existing products had been in operation for many years and no longer delivered optimal performance. The installation company, Brion Teknik Fyrbodal, understood from discussions with its customer that a traditional full refurbishment was neither economically nor environmentally sustainable. Instead, attention turned to Swegon’s circularity concept, which reduces embodied carbon through several activities, including reuse of previously installed indoor climate products.
The final solution combined several approaches. One older air handling unit was replaced with a unit that had been previously reclaimed, quality-assured and upgraded at Swegon’s factory in Kvänum. Other units were refurbished on site, which means that key components were exchanged and controls were upgraded with modern functionalities. Only a few units needed to be fully replaced, and was exchanged for units that, as standard, are manufactured with a high proportion of recycled steel. Installation work was completed quickly, with minimal disruption to ongoing operations.
“This project shows that we can change how the industry thinks about both new-build construction and refurbishment. By making better use of what already exists, rather than producing new products or using virgin materials, we can achieve both climate targets and high operational performance in far more resource-efficient ways,” says Eva Karlsson, CEO of Swegon Group.
The project clearly illustrates how reuse of indoor climate products can significantly reduce the embodied carbon footprint of buildings. By combining reuse, upgrading of existing products and smarter resource use in new manufacturing, the climate impact of this installation was reduced by 75% compared with using entirely new products. This without any compromise to performance or indoor climate quality.
“Choosing reuse is not a second-best option. These products are quality-assured and upgraded to perform like new, but with a much lower climate impact. We offer the same warranties for reused products as we do for newly manufactured ones,” says Caroline Jacobsson, Circularity Director at Swegon Group.
“From an installer’s perspective, we see that this type of solutions will become increasingly important in the future. The potential is significant in existing buildings, but there are clear opportunities in new-build projects as well,” says Fredrik Hennström, CEO of Brion Teknik Fyrbodal.
Swegon’s circularity concept is a clear example of how the real estate sector can implement more circularly in practice. By combining reuse, upgrading and the use of recycled materials, new, and so far unique, opportunities are created to meet ambitious sustainability targets.
Find the full reference case here.
For more information:
Caroline Jacobsson, Circularity Director at Swegon: +46 31 895800
