Utrecht, 3 February 2025 - This morning, Housing and Spatial Planning Minister Mona Keijzer officially opened BouwBeurs 2025, the largest construction event in the Netherlands. Keijzer pointed out that within housing construction, we need to move to a different way of working: build more, faster and with better quality. Doekle Terpstra, chairman of Techniek Nederland, added during the opening that we should not lose sight of sustainability in housing construction. During the opening, the winners of the BouwBeurs Awards were also announced. From today until Friday 7 February, BouwBeurs is entirely dedicated to themes such as bio-based building, circularity, digitalisation and industrialisation.
100,000 homes a year calls for new design, development and construction chains
Minister Mona Keijzer addressed the huge housing shortage we face in the Netherlands. Currently, there is a housing task where we need to build 100,000 houses a year. According to Keijzer, you need a new design, development and construction chain for this. "We will have to go to a different way of working, we will have to build more, faster and of better quality," the minister said. Keijzer cites the programme Innovation and scaling up housing construction as an important booster towards working differently and building more, quality better and faster. The minister continued: "With this, we are initiating the necessary, fundamental change from traditional, project-based construction to a more conceptual, industrial and digital housing construction. Not just new construction, but making better use of the built environment. Building smarter and faster together is not something to be waited for. A lot can already be done within the existing rules. It is a matter of doing and daring."
Towards an innovative and sustainable future
Doekle Terpstra, president of Techniek Nederland: "Everyone agrees that we must do everything possible to get housing construction up and running as soon as possible. However, it is also important not to lose sight of sustainability in the process. We can only do it right once. We must therefore be willing to use our joint innovative strength not only for the quantitative task of 100,000 homes a year, but certainly also for the qualitative task."
Winners of new BouwBeurs Awards excel in innovation
For the second time, the BouwBeurs Awards were presented for innovations in the industry. The jury chose the winners from nine entries in three categories: Environmental Impact, Smart & Efficient and Tools & Craftsmen. First of all, the jury awarded IBIS for Environmental Impact from Brink Software, which easily combines environmental impact calculations with project budgets. In the Slim & Efficient category, Prefab Isolatie Nederland received the award with their 'Insulation in one day' service. FIRST BASE Ground Screws' TP60 Pull Test Kit also won prizes in the Tools & Professionals category with their tool to efficiently measure load-bearing capacity. The jury consisted of Dennis Kosten, director at VLOK, Marjet Rutten, transition manager at Building Balance and others, Martijn Carlier, manager of driving digitalisation at DigiGO, Nikos Kounoupiotis, contractor at Dynami Bouwservice, René du Pon, senior safety expert at Volandis and Wouter de Vries, editor-in-chief of Aannemer. More information about the awards.
Jaarbeurs launches 'European Smart City Expo': new annual expo for climate neutral and smart cities
Jaarbeurs announced this morning that it is expanding its portfolio of leading trade shows within the construction and installation sector with a new event: the European Smart City Expo (ESCE). The brand new annual expo, ESCE, focuses on the future of sustainable urban development and will take place for the first time in June 2026. As organiser of well-known trade shows such as BouwBeurs and VSK, Jaarbeurs has played a central role in the construction and installation sector for decades. Jeroen van Hooff, CEO Royal Jaarbeurs, emphasises continuous innovation: "We are committed to the future of the sector. After successful launches of DigiBouw and Future Facade, we are further expanding our offering with the ESCE. This expo will be the meeting place for professionals working on climate-neutral and smart cities."
