Buurman is a DIY store for professionals and consumers, but at the same time a waste processor for construction companies, museums/art institutions, festivals and other organisations. Residual materials which are still useful, are sold in the Buurman store.

Building materials left over after a building project or festival, often end up being incinerated. Yet they’re still suitable for all kinds of projects. In the Buurman DIY store, the Buurman team collects residual materials such as waste wood, insulation materials, plywood panels and electricity cables. DIY enthusiasts and professionals can buy these ‘mature materials’ at an attractive price for use in their own projects. The Buurman mission is to involve Rotterdammers in the re-use of residual materials, in order to contribute to the circular economy.

Closing material chains: just do it!

“The current methods of waste processing are no longer in keeping with the sustainable targets of tomorrow’s world, in which there is a central role for current themes such as commodities scarcity, the circular economy and reduction of CO2 emissions. Valuable residual materials from the (construction) industry should be reassigned, rather than being dumped, incinerated or recycled for low-value items. We facilitate this at Buurman by enabling local re-use of these materials”.