Utrecht, 6 February 2023 - This morning, Housing and Spatial Planning Minister Hugo de Jonge officially opened BouwBeurs 2023, the largest construction event in the Netherlands. De Jonge cited the lack of locations as the biggest problem for the colossal housing task. Royal Jaarbeurs also launched the Bouw & Installatie Hub: an online knowledge platform aimed at bringing together professionals in the construction and installation industry, connecting them and accelerating sustainable growth in the sector. The winners of the BouwBeurs Awards were also announced. From today until Friday 10 February, BouwBeurs is entirely dedicated to circularity, industrialisation and digitalisation.
Lack of sites biggest problem for housing challenge
Minister Hugo de Jonge addressed the gigantic housing task at hand: 900,000 new homes are needed until 2030. According to De Jonge, this number is really necessary to address the current shortfall of 300,000 houses and to build additional ones for people who are still arriving in the Netherlands. "This is the realistic number we are committed to," the minister said. That it will not be easy to achieve this number the minister acknowledged, but he said he would not opt for the path of least resistance by then building less. How then? Hugo de Jonge indicated that the lack of locations is one of the biggest problems. He wants to tackle this mainly administratively by 'locking us together until we get out of it'. Specifically, De Jonge is referring to the regional housing deals he makes with provinces. "If things don't work out with a location, for example because the business case doesn't come together, we have to move on immediately. We should not only look at inner-city locations, but also at places on the edges of the city. Sometimes a meadow is just a meadow on which we can build." The minister further denounced the six years of procedures it takes on average to build a house. How that time should be shortened he did not specify. However, he did suggest that the Not-in-my-backyard culture of local residents plays an important role in this. "The right to view sometimes seems more important than the right to live. We need to move towards a Yes-in-my-backyard culture." The minister closed with a call to support the action of ex-pro footballer Evgeniy Levchenko who supplies generators to Ukraine.
Royal Jaarbeurs launches Construction & Installation Hub with results first monitor
Jeroen van Hooff, CEO Royal Jaarbeurs: "Jaarbeurs is the hub of the Construction & Installation sector and has been organising the biggest trade fairs BouwBeurs and VSK for many years. Every year we host many guest events for this sector. For years, we have been sharing knowledge and connecting parties 365 days a year on our online platforms installatieprofs.nl and bouwbeurs.nl. In recent years, we have seen that under the influence of sustainability and energy transition, construction and technology are increasingly growing in each other's direction, becoming connected. Buildings are becoming more complex and technical, which calls for more cooperation at an earlier stage. To strengthen this cooperation and accelerate sustainable growth, Jaarbeurs has merged the two aforementioned platforms and created the Construction & Installation Hub. A brand new online platform with over 300,000 profiles, an open community, with content from suppliers, media, knowledge institutions, government and industry organisations. A platform aimed at decision-makers and influencers; a place where sharing knowledge, connecting and meeting each other is central, 365 days a year." From today, the Hub features the first Construction and Installation Monitor. A survey of almost 3,000 respondents about their opinions on pressing issues in the construction and installation market. This survey shows that the industry itself is sceptical about the task mentioned by minister Hugo de Jonge. Frequently mentioned concerns are rising interest rates, staff shortages, dragging procedures and rising prices of building materials. In addition, the lack of personnel stands out as the theme that worries the market. The full survey can be read at Bouweninstallatiehub.nl
Winners of new BouwBeurs Awards excel in innovation
The first BouwBeurs Awards were presented for innovations in the industry. The jury chose the winners from nine entries in three categories: Circularity, Smart & Efficient and Craftsmen. The jury, consisting of Teun Schröder, Marjet Rutten, Margo Caspers, Dennis Koster and Martijn Carlier, awarded Fassat Geveltechniek's Beyond Wall System, Zehnder Group Nederland's ComfoVar Aero ventilation solution and Prefabmaat's prefab materials configurator. In addition, Prefabmaat also won the audience award. The jury chose the winners from nine entries in three categories: Circularity, Smart & Efficient and Craftsmen. More information about the awards.
