Building deconstruction is the systematic dismantlement of building materials and building components, specifically for re-use, recycling, and waste management. It differs from demolition where a site is cleared of its building materials by the most expedient means and a majority of the demolished materials are hauled to a landfill for disposal.
Building deconstruction is also referred to as "construction in reverse" or "Last On, First Off (LOFO) Construction". Deconstruction is new by name, but not by practice, as the recovery and reuse of materials in order to build new structures is as old as buildings themselves. Reuse of materials might be considered one of the "original" green building techniques, along with the use of local materials.
In the pre-industrial era, building material conservation was driven by the high intensity of the labor effort required to harvest and prepare them. Reuse of materials provided an economic advantage. In the mid-to-late 20th century, the emergence of machine-made and mass-produced materials, chemically complicated materials, and the relatively low cost of oil allowed this basic idea of "waste not, want not" to fall from usage in the creation of built environment.
Buildings, like everything, have a life-cycle. Deconstruction focuses on giving the building materials within a building a new life once the building as a whole can no longer continue.
Building materials and components within old buildings may still be valuable, sometimes more valuable than at the time the building was constructed. Deconstruction is a method of harvesting what is commonly considered "waste" and reclaiming it into useful building material. In the process, Advanced Restoration Corp. seeks to recycle or reclaim for re-use a majority of the structure, save the property owner expensive debris hauling and disposal costs, and enable the donors to earn a significant tax deduction for their donations.