project11:Talk with Sander Buijs
Talk with Sander Buijs
10-02-2012 During the site visit on the NDSM Warf we walked by De Afbramerij. At that moment Sander Buijs walked out of his workshop and asked us friendly where we came from. That question was the beginning of an interesting talk about bottom-up approaches in this area. In the following paragraphs we will first narrate more about De Afbramerij and its future developments. After that we will state Sander Buijs’ personal story about the NDSM area.
De Afbramerij is situated on the NDSM warf, an old shipyard for ship construction. People used to make al kind of steel components for ships in the large hall. In 1979, this company had to gain new ground, as a result of the closure of the yard. They were still making steel structures, but no longer for ships. Nowadays this is also not possible anymore, due to the increasing density of the area it became impossible to transport those large steel structures. So the people at this company had a choice, or they had to shutdown the company or they had to redevelop the company dramatically. They chose the last option and started Booiz, a company that helps to create and develop meaningful concepts, products and services.
The building itself will also undergo a transformation. It will become a sustainable building with all kind of creative & innovative companies and business, with a lot of place for interaction. Next to that De Afbramerij will preserve its industrial character and history. This will be realized from a bottom-up approach. The co-workers from the steel factory developed the new concept and want to involve future users in the design process. In this way, they want to respond on the question from the market. What do people want in this area?
This question brings us back to the personal story of Sander Buijs. He has worked on NDSM for a long time and finds the problem with this area the lack of vision. It’s not clear who is asking this question. Different people want different things on NDSM. That’s why he wants to be a bruggen bouwer, a bridge maker between different people and different needs. So the goal is not to just make a building, but to think more detailed about the future users and especially develop it even after the building is finished.
Another disadvantage of the NDSM nowadays Sander wants to improve is the fluctuations in use over time. After 5pm, when everyone goes home, the area looks extinct. He wants to address 24/7 activity in the building.
His story is optimistic and above all inspiring. But he recognizes the long way that NDSM has to go, before al the disadvantages are gone and the character is preserved. For instance, there is still a big parking problem in the area that doesn’t seem to get fixed in the near future.
Thank you Sander Buijs. You have been tagged!.
