Globally, 39% of all CO2 emissions come from the built world. This happens in two ways: firstly, during the construction, maintenance, and eventual end of the building (which we call 'embodied carbon'), and secondly, during the use of buildings (we call this 'operational carbon'). At HOLD, we have an ambitious goal: we want to construct our office buildings so that they significantly contribute to reducing these CO2 emissions. A wooden office environment is not only pleasant to work in, but it also reduces stress and is attractive to a new generation of tenants and employees.
🌳 Bio-based materials
We've made a radical decision to construct all of our buildings entirely from wood, even the core and facade. Wood acts as a powerful CO2 storage unit, unlike traditional building materials that emit CO2 during their production. This means our use of wood not only reduces CO2 emissions but also actively extracts CO2 from the atmosphere and stores it. A HOLD building uses, on average, 1,682 m3 of European softwood, equivalent to 1,320 tons of CO2. This not only makes our buildings more sustainable but also actively contributes to the fight against climate change.
🏗️ Prefab construction
We use a prefab construction process where we prefabricate as much work as possible in a controlled environment. Only assembly is required at the construction site itself. Furthermore, wood is a warm and aesthetic material that requires no further finishing, such as plastering or painting, resulting in significantly fewer operations at the construction site. This results in a cleaner construction site, fewer logistical movements, and offers benefits in terms of efficiency and sustainability.
🛠️ Future-proof design
At HOLD, we constantly think ahead. Our modularly designed building system allows customers to adjust the configuration of their HOLD building now and in the future via our online configurator. Moreover, we have predefined spots in our buildings where customers can place partition walls without any changes to building services. The advantage is that these flexible walls are produced and taken back by HOLD. This keeps modularity and circularity at the heart of our design, extending the life of our buildings and storing CO2 as long as possible.
♻️ Anticipating the end-of-life
At the end of its economic lifespan, we take back the building blocks of HOLD buildings to reuse elsewhere. This contributes to sustainable construction and a circular economy, keeping materials and resources in the loop as long as possible. Our mission goes beyond just construction; it's about creating a sustainable future and responsible resource usage. HOLD buildings have an MPG score of less than 0.5 and a GPR score of more than 8.5. We are determined to make a difference, not just for now, but for future generations.
⚡ Energy-efficient building services
Using wood as a building material also significantly contributes to energy performance since wood has excellent insulating properties. Our buildings are exceptionally energy-efficient, consuming only 39 kWh per square meter of usable area per year, significantly better than the Paris Proof standard. We achieve this with a proven, low-tech building services concept that guarantees not only a comfortable indoor climate but also sustainable energy performance (A++++).
🌡️ Innovative climate ceilings
We use Phase Changing Materials (PCM) ceiling islands, enabling us to achieve natural cooling and heating. Moreover, these materials can capture the required energy for heating during peak moments, which we precisely determine using HOLD algorithms, often at times when energy is available at no extra cost.
☀️ Optimal use of solar energy
For the remaining energy needs for climate control and power supply, we use solar energy, producing a portion of our energy 'off-grid' and ensuring that HOLD buildings more than meet the Dutch energy performance requirements that are called Bijna Energieneutrale Gebouwen (BENG).
🤖 Smart buildings