Sustainable Building & Development

Introduction Specialization
The “building team” of the Center for Sustainability is led by Professor Anke van Hal. Its aim is to help the building industry make a profit by integrating sustainability into its daily activities. The purpose is not to support existing techniques and methods financially. The goal is to develop new thinking and working methods which make the choice for environment-friendly measures more appealing to all parties involved, or to try to achieve “a merger of interests”, as we prefer to call it.

 

To achieve this goal we have developed a method in which the interests of all parties are involved. Chain collaboration and leadership are key elements in this method. Our building-focused team operates within a large network of academics from various disciplines. The current complex situation in the construction sector is the starting point to create new opportunities for the sector in collaboration with the government, companies and organizations. Research and education activities are being developed and applied in different forms.

 

We focus on the whole construction industry, from urban projects to smaller projects. Special attention is paid to two specific issues: the preservation of monumental and historically important buildings (led by ir. Birgit Dulski) and the accelerated preservation of mass-produced houses from the 60s and 70s. We have set up two networks around these themes (“Sustainability and Cultural Heritage “and “Smart & Fast”) in which research and practice will support and reinforce each other.

 

The ‘Sustainable Building & Development’ chair is sponsored by Heijmans and Koninklijke BAM Groep NV.