We will be facing a considerable challenge in the Netherlands in the coming years with respect to sustainable construction. The Paris Climate Agreement requires new buildings to be as sustainable and energy-efficient as possible. This also offers opportunities for smart, new solutions and innovations and that’s something to which we’d like to contribute.
We are also very familiar with instruments such as BREEAM-NL, which enables integrated measurement and assessment of the sustainability of new buildings, existing buildings, districts and demolition projects. Our coating system, for example, satisfies the high BREEAM ‘Outstanding’ requirements, but steel is in itself also extremely sustainable. You can make simply everything with it and it’s 100% recyclable.
BREEAM = cooperation
Good cooperation is vital in order to achieve a high BREEAM score. That’s why we are often also involved early on in the design process, as we were when realising the NewLogic III on Het Laar business park, a building that obtained the BREEAM ‘Outstanding’ design certificate. The total main load bearing structure of this building comprises some 2,500 tonnes of steel. The good preparations ultimately enabled us to produce, assemble and coat this structure in under four months.
BREEAM Outstanding label
We also worked on The Tube distribution centre on Het Laar business park. This project also received a BREEAM Outstanding label for its extremely sustainable design. The Tube’s desired curves were achieved by producing the steel profiles at the factory in advance and bolting these together at the construction site. The curves were too sharp for us to achieve using steel profiles in some places, so we made special fitting pieces from individual steel sheets that we welded together.