The project ‘Centrada Lelystad’ was chosen as Project of the Year during the well-attended Trespa | Archicomm event on 15 January at Kasteel De Vanenburg in Putten. Naomi Even from HevoFame was the architect. The election was organised for the third time and seems to be becoming a fixture in the Dutch architecture landscape.
First, an analysis of the winning project: when the facade cladding of the Centrada headquarters in Lelystad discoloured and began to detach after 25 years, a simple replacement seemed obvious. However, a different direction was chosen: a substantial quality boost where the building's appearance would better align with the organisation's identity.
The choice fell on a facade construction with Trespa Meteon® Lumen combined with Uni Colours. The four Meteon panels are applied in one colour, but with different finishes. The result is a facade that strongly reacts to light: depending on the time of day, season, weather and viewing direction, the plasticity of the building changes. In other words: we are talking about one colour with four different appearances.
Besides the architectural effect, functionality plays a major role. The Meteon panels are vandal-proof and low-maintenance, which reduces Centrada's management burden in the coming years. The execution, with Salverda Bouw and H&S Montage, is carefully organised, among other things by using a warehouse opposite the office for preparatory work. Supplier Jongeneel managed to limit material loss to below 10% with a well-thought-out cutting plan. The combination of a pronounced light play, practical robustness and smart collaboration in the chain proved to be a decisive reason for all voters in the room to choose this project as the winner.
The team of the winning project was, of course, very satisfied. Flowers and the beautiful engraved plaque were presented by the Trespa team on stage.
The Best Of The Rest
The second prize went to architect Rigobert Nivillac (from Studio Leon Thier / Wubben Chan architects) for the project Koploper in Gouda. Practically next to the NS station, the ‘impossible was made possible’. It was about the design of a sustainable building with 156 social rental homes and facilities, characterised by the distinctive identity of the Spoorzone area, which is in full development. Verdouw Bouwproducten was the supplier of the project.
The project team of Imagine Rotterdam, dancing towers with a sustainable skin, could return home with a broad smile even after the event. They won third prize. On the Laan op Zuid in Rotterdam, two impressive residential towers are connected by a solid plinth with owner-occupied and rental homes around a green courtyard. FLOW facade cladding and facade specialist Jongeneel were the executors. Robertus de Bruin of Barcode Architects was responsible for the design.
Panel discussions
Just like during the previous two editions, Trespa, in collaboration with the platform ArchiComm, had put together an extensive programme for the visitors. A beautiful documentary was presented about the 12 nominees from last year. Additionally, there were two interactive panel discussions on stage led by moderator Jerry Helmers.
In the first panel discussion, the visitors were introduced to Tierra Outdoor, a manufacturer of garden furniture. And what was the surprise in this conversation? Practical sustainability! The garden furniture is made from Trespa panels! Cas Broeren and Daan van Stiphout from Tierra Outdoor explained how the collaboration with Trespa came about. Representing Trespa, Fokke Vos and Tjeerd den Houter were on stage.
ChatGPT decides
The second panel discussion was an exciting one because... at the start of the interaction on stage, no one knew what the topic of the discussion would be. It was determined live by ChatGPT.
Moderator Jerry Helmers spoke a creative prompt on stage and AI made the choice. Four visitors from the audience who found a Trespa Sample under their chair were invited to participate in that panel discussion.
ChatGPT wanted to know the panel members' response to the question of whether sustainable building is mainly marketing and that 'the real profit' lies in simply building less. This led to a stimulating discussion. (“Building less is actually not an option in today's times!”). An answer was also given to the question of whether the architect has lost their social authority (“No!”) and it became clear that the architect is no longer 'just' a co-designer but has become an increasingly larger part of the entire chain. But above all: an architect must dare to choose more than ever. “Otherwise, you end up with mediocrity.”
Good stimuli from ChatGPT led to an unexpectedly hilarious, yet very substantive, 25-minute interaction on stage.
All visitors also met the Dane Jorgen Hauritz, who started last year as Country Manager for the Netherlands and the UK. With this, Trespa has also brought in a wealth of experience and knowledge about the facade industry. According to Hauritz, who also gave a short presentation and was interviewed on stage, the architects in the Netherlands are among the world’s best but... “we must not forget that in changing times we must continue to work on our creativity.”
Celebrating collaborations and beautiful facade works
Jim Wolters, Account Manager Facade at Trespa and organiser of the event, looks back on the third edition with great satisfaction. “It was very interactive. The audience was continuously involved in everything that happened on stage and there was also a lot of buzz during the networking moments in the breaks and at the buffet afterwards. I really see the Trespa | ArchiComm event as a beautiful annual moment where collaborations and beautiful facade works are celebrated. The beauty of this edition was that the projects that were central in our documentary also literally provided a lot of inspiration. Architects sought each other out, wanted to learn from each other to give themselves a boost and take a step forward.”
When Jim is asked if the event will be scheduled again in 2027, he laughs. “As far as I am concerned, yes. The feeling is good, we receive positive reactions and we have also literally created connections between people in the field. As always, we evaluate afterwards but personally, I am keen to come together again in January 2027 in this way, with a lot of interaction.”
