Themes

Smart typologies

Our designs are always based on a type. The type describes the principle functionality and coherence of a spatial setup. We like to discuss a project on this level, because before designing it, we think we should reach common ground with all stakeholders about the way a building should work and not about how it should look.

Once we establish this typological base, the project becomes resilient to major changes because of aesthetics.

The projects Schutterstoren in Amsterdam, Achterhaven in Rotterdam, en Markiezaten in Bergen op Zoom, are striking results of this approach.

We initiate and are involved in research projects on typologies. Examples are the Good Affordable Housing study, which recalibrates the basic quality for social housing in the Netherlands, and the Blue Box, a study into density with a comparison of characteristic international urban building types.

You can read more about these research projects on the Research page

Themes

Sustainable future

We believe in innovation and we have an optimistic view on the future. We look forward, launch sky-reaching ideas and realize them with an astonishing simplicity.

Nevertheless our feet are solidly on the ground. We never surround our designs with academic smoke screens. The project and the client’s ambition always come first and the result must be sustainable in the broadest sense.

Therefore the buildings we design are constructed with durable materials. We believe that the sustainability of the building firstly should be found in the hardware: the structure and the façade. Those are the parts of a building that remain the longest.

We make integral designs for buildings to create inclusive places, that are affordable and that have the lowest possible impact on the climate

The Lycka residential tower in Amsterdam is an example of the optimal integration of these aspects: affordable, energy-efficient, sustainable and inclusive. The Qualm office building has a demand-driven VRF ventilation system (air heat pump), with only facade units, so no installations on the ceilings are required. The Big Green Egg Europe office building is completely energy-neutral, gas-free and makes use of geothermal heat, solar panels and green roofs.

Themes

Tailor made design

The clients we like to work for are committed to the users of their buildings, and their well-being. We believe that a comfortable living and working environment can play an important role in this.
To ensure that the design fits the client's vision, we thoroughly immerse ourselves in the culture of a company, neighborhood or target group. Once we have understood this, that knowledge will enable us to make the best suited design for the building and the interior.

The office buildings we designed for Big Green Egg Europe and Qualm are examples of successful results of this approach.

Themes

Building is a craft

Our involvement in the projects we design doesn't stop until they are built. The construction principle, the choice of materials, the aesthetics of the detail; they all play a crucial role in the development and execution of a design. We look for smart, feasible and affordable solutions that create honest beauty and give the architecture a natural character.

Our craft is twofold. Firstly, we bring the wishes of the client and the advice of the constructor, installer and cost calculator together in a suitable and technically elaborated design. Communication and the sharing of information are crucial in this regard. BIM is our tool for this.

Secondly, we continue to develop our knowledge and innovate building materials if this has added value for the project.

Examples of our craftsmen-working-method are the projects: Wellton Towers, for which we developed prefab double-curved FRC facade elements and Wellton Gold, for which we did material research with the manufacturer to be able to make the diagonal fencing.