How FRONT is building a more circular future, one WasteBasedBrick at a time

Tackling an 850 million tonne construction waste problem

Let’s rewind to 2015 when Massa, alongside his then business partner, Tom van Soest first asked the deceptively simple question: ‘how much waste is generated in the Netherlands?’. The answer was staggering. “We found out that construction and demolition waste is by far the biggest waste stream there is,” Massa explains. “Actually, it’s about 35% of all waste generated in the Netherlands — 25 million tonnes a year in this country alone”. The solution? Most of the material was being crushed and re-used as low-grade filler — or worse, dumped into landfill. 

Determined to challenge this, they founded FRONT (originally StoneCycling) and began experimenting. But where do you begin when the problem’s so vast? Well, in the Netherlands, brick is the key construction material. So in 2015, FRONT developed the first WasteBasedBrick, made from at least 60% upcycled waste material. “Imagine that empty wine bottle you recycle on Sunday morning, for example,” Massa says, holding up the almost-edible pinkish brick labelled ‘Nougat’. “The glass is mostly recycled, but 5% — from things like the paper labels — ends up in landfill. We worked with the recycling centre to reuse that 5% of otherwise wasted material in our bricks.”

FRONT’s first house, built in 2016 using 20 tonnes of upcycled waste, was quickly picked up by The Guardian — and its phone hasn’t stopped ringing since. Today, thanks to a partnership with DC Bricks, WasteBasedBricks are available on an industrial scale, which, you guessed it, means an even bigger impact. To date, FRONT has completed over 200 projects in 17 countries, upcycling over 3 million kilograms of waste. Ayden’s new office on the Rokin for instance? That was them.

FRONT’s new collaborative vision

After nearly a decade of building brick by brick, FRONT is now focused on scaling its impact. In 2024, the company launched a new vision: to become Europe’s leading platform for circular building materials — not by doing it alone, but by lifting others up too. “We’re building a network of FRONTrunners,” says Massa. “Architects, developers, scientists — there are so many people with the ideas and drive to create change. Our job is to connect the dots and bring those ideas to life.”

This collaborative focus builds on FRONT’s biggest strength: turning innovation into impact. By offering business support, client networks and product development know-how, FRONT is now helping a growing network of global innovators bring cutting-edge materials to market: “Together, our impact is limitless.”

Beyond bricks: Nature-inspired materials changing the industry

FRONT’s portfolio already includes some mind-blowing innovations. Take Biomason, a biotech firm that has found a way to recreate concrete — a material used in over half the world’s buildings and responsible for 8% of emissions — by mimicking the behaviour of the bacteria that forms one of nature’s most robust structures, coral reefs. The resulting biocement is three times stronger than concrete and crucially, does not require kiln firing. “Scientists aren’t renowned for selling tiles,” Ward says with a smile, “we help them shape the product and bring it to market”. 

Is there anything better than buttered corn on the cob? Now there is. CornWall has developed the technology to make new interior wall panels out of corn waste. “Leftover corn material is normally burned as biomass,” Ward explains, “CornWall saves it and produces 100% biodegradable and entirely reusable wall tiles without emitting carbon.” And then there’s Amsterdam-based startup Pretty Plastic, which transforms 100% PVC objects — like rain gutters and window frames — into sleek reusable facade cladding. 

Amsterdam leads the way in the circular city movement

With its pledge to become the world's first fully circular city by 2050, Amsterdam is setting the stage for a radical shift in how cities build and grow. For companies like FRONT, this presents an opportunity — and a responsibility. “The Netherlands is at the forefront of the push for more sustainable cities,” says Massa. “We want to take what’s working here and scale it across other parts of Europe like the UK, Scandinavia and Germany.”

Although momentum is building, the path to truly sustainable cities is an arduous one. That’s why, Massa argues, storytelling matters: “ If something looks beautiful and has tangible positive impact, people will naturally take better care of it.” Take Amsterdam itself: “If you cycle around in Amsterdam, you see a perfect example of a city that's built in such a way that everybody wants to preserve it.” He also calls for a broader definition of sustainability:

From vision to reality: the people driving the change

Massa’s path hasn’t followed a typical business track. Trained in political science, he’s spent the past decade at the intersection of architecture, construction and circular strategy. His motivation? “I could not spend my time doing something that doesn’t make a contribution to where the planet is now,” he says. 

But more than metrics and mission statements, it’s the people who drive him every day:

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