building contract research building vu signed

These are strange days, but fortunately we also have good news: last Monday March 16th, the Free University (VU) and the building consortium of TBI companies J.P. van Eesteren and Croonwolter&dros signed the building contract for the new VU research building! cepezed and cepezedinterieur made the integral design, which was BREEAM-NL Excellent certified in the autumn of 2019, despite the complex design challenges.

complex education and research functions
The circa 27.500 m² research building will be located on the VU campus along the Amsterdam Zuidas. It will accommodate a range of complex functions and facilities for education and research in the fields of, among others, neuroscience and oncology. For example, it will house education spaces, science classrooms, laboratories, vibration-free laser facilities and, for example, rooms for electron microscopy. Much needed campus facilities such as catering and meeting facilities are also provided.

sustainability ambitions
The project suitably fits the sustainability ambitions of the university. For example, we designed a building with plenty of daylight and green roofs, among other things. The research building will also be equipped with solar panels, LED lighting, water-saving sanitary facilities, energy-efficient equipment and elevators, presence detection, good facilities for garbage separation and an aquifer thermal energy storage (ATES).

vibration-free laboratories
In connection with sensitive laser configurations, it was important to render part of the installations fully vibration-free. The laboratories in the building are realized at ML (Medical Laboratory) level ll. This sets high standards for air pressure regimes, circuits for technical gases, power supplies, data connections and so on. The building consortium will not only take care of the realization of these aspects, but also of the the validation and commissioning.

Construction is expected to start around the summer of 2020. The new building is another important step in the development of the VU Campus. It contributes to its sustainability, to the renewal of the beta cluster housing and to the overall research infrastructure.