We help organizations to navigate the changing world. We are contacted at moments of transformation, when a company needs to grow, shrink, adapt or transform. Our passion is to deeply understand a company’s particular position and to elegantly resolve the tangle of organizational, behavioral, functional and spatial issues and changes into a clear strategy and simple, specific design. The result of our solutions are proud end-users, who feel strongly connected to their new environment due to their involvement and input during the change process.
This is the positive impact that we, as Hollandse Nieuwe, create. Within our process, each project becomes a unique expression of our clients’ character and the embodiment of their specific values and requirements. We create smart, future orientated, dynamic, environments. And while each of our projects are unique, certain aspects are recognizable in all the work that we do. We see that technology, health and circularity play an increasing role in our daily lives and it is the refinement and specific expression of these elements that return in fresh new ways and create work specific to Hollandse Nieuwe.
At Hollandse Nieuwe it starts with listening to people and observing how they work, learn, live and care for each other. Seeing and understanding the influence that products and the physical environment can have on daily life is our first step in creating convincing and attractive experiences. Crafting these experiences requires coherent design strategies at varying scales. Drawing from a diverse pool of knowledge, nationalities and specialisms, our multi-disciplined team work together to turn each assignment into its own unique solution.
Consisting of architects, interior architects, designers and technicians, our team work on an array of project typologies, including new buildings, renovations, restorations, master plans, refurbishment of existing buildings and products. Our portfolio is also similarly diverse, including work environments, educational institutions, campuses, hospitals, stations, furniture, retail and museums, with the scope varying from 10 m2 to more than 40,000 m2.
Within our projects, we use product development to create the solutions we feel are necessary but missing from what is currently available. Examples of this include PANL, STACKR, BNCH and SHFT. These products offer us design solutions for themes such as; flexible use of space, support of scrum and agile working methods and virtualization of the workspace. STACKR and PANL have been tested and used successfully within a number of our projects and are produced through Cowerk.nl.
A well-considered and healthy building can contribute to a sense of pride, commitment, ownership and raised energy levels among its users. It has been shown that these are vital qualities required for developing future-facing, vibrant and innovative organizations and communities.
Within our projects we aim to improve the energy performance of each building. Reuse, circular principles and sustainable use and maintenance are the basic principles of our design language. This helps lead us towards healthy buildings. We carefully select each material, where properties such as its production, use of raw resources and harmful emission levels are taken into account, with Greenpeace Amsterdam being an inspiring example of this approach.
Hollandse Nieuwe has experience with all sustainability certifications (such as BREEAM Outstanding, WELL Platinum) which enables us to quantify and qualify sustainability ambitions.
We have been proud experts in “Activity Based Working” for over 20 years. But as we develop and grow, the term ‘Activity Based Working’ doesn’t wholly capture what we can offer and create. We design unique (work) settings that specifically fulfil our clients’ needs and aspirations, taking the environments beyond what is recognized as ‘ABW’. Technology plays a large role in enabling this, allowing for greater independence and delivering the potential to work independently of a particular time or place.
Our experience enables us to inspire clients around ideas such as cooperation, knowledge sharing, chance meetings, agile working methods and their own work culture. Within ideas like these, we refine spaces that reflect an organizations functional and cultural qualities, creating places that act as magnets for both current and future users.
Our process of taking a project from initial brief to completion moves a design through a number of phases. We take these steps alongside the client, working towards a final design. Firstly, we investigate the question itself, deepening our understanding of the client and the underlying motivations behind our client’s brief.
From the initial question, we define the project scope and its design principles, searching for creative opportunities. We use different methodologies to explore a projects boundaries, from creating a ‘program of possibilities’ through to producing ’10 crazy ideas’, all looking for the edge of what is possible.
We use Virtual Reality, together with our clients, to experience the qualities of our designs. We develop the environments from abstract through to ‘realistic’. Using VR brings our clients future into the present. From here, we finalize the design and prepare for both the tender and construction phases. Our methods are based on both robust, standard construction methodologies and a more agile, creative approach. These complimentary processes enable us to always take a project from A to B in the most interesting and efficient way.
