Old Newton Primary School

Overview

Old Newton Primary School in Suffolk needed a new classroom built to ambitious sustainability goals. Through a pioneering partnership between Natural Building Systems, Circuland, OrcaScan, and GS1 UK, every component of the ADEPT timber system was embedded with NFC/RFID tags linked to Digital Product Passports, enabling full lifecycle tracking from manufacture to potential reuse.

The Challenge

Traditional construction creates buildings that cannot be easily adapted or disassembled, generating enormous waste at end-of-life. The school initially considered prefabricated volumetric solutions but rejected them due to limited design options, questions of longevity, and potential air quality issues from petrochemical-derived materials. Natural Building Systems needed a way to prove their ADEPT kit-of-parts system could enable true circular construction with complete material transparency.

Our Solution

Circuland powered the Digital Product Passports (DPPs), ensuring materials had structured, accessible lifecycle data. NBS products were assigned GS1 Global Trade Item Numbers (GTINs) embedded within RFID tags provided by Barcode Warehouse, as well as QR codes powered by GS1 supplied by OrcaScan. These identifiers link directly to the Circuland platform, where stakeholders can scan any component with their smartphone to access full material composition, sustainability credentials, and lifecycle tracking.

Results

• Every timber component tagged with NFC/RFID and GS1 Digital Link QR codes
• Full material composition accessible via smartphone scan redirecting to Digital Product Passport
• GS1 GTINs provide standardised, interoperable data-sharing across all systems
• VOC levels measured at 1/10th of BREEAM standard for healthy indoor air quality
• Hemp composite insulation buffers CO₂ during high occupancy, reducing ventilation energy costs
• 100% of components designed for demounting and reuse at end-of-life