Powerhouse Company

From industrial harbour in Amsterdam-Noord to residential waterfront: this is KAAP! Together with Orange Architects and NEXT architects, we collaborated on KAAP: an ensemble of five freestanding residential buildings on the IJ. Commissioned by Amvest and COD Real Estate BV, the project brings together 70 apartments, ground-floor commercial spaces, and a circular hospitality pavilion within the future Oeverpark. KAAP forms part of Cityplot Buiksloterham, an urban plan by Studioninedots and DELVA Landscape Architecture / Urbanism. The five buildings follow the neighbourhood grid, subtly rotated in response to Grasweg's diagonal line through the area. This open composition brings daylight into the site, safeguards privacy and preserves long views across the IJ. We designed Coast and Verde, the two outer buildings, drawing on the idea of contemporary harbor lofts with glass, black steel, horizontal lines, and generous outdoor spaces rooted in Buiksloterham’s industrial setting. Orange Architects designed Horn and York, combining white concrete bases with sculptural corten-steel tops. The lower apartments have panoramic views over the IJ, while higher up, double-height windows frame the wide Dutch skies. NEXT architects designed Blanc, with 18 corner apartments, yellow-pigmented concrete, perforated panels, and flared balconies, as well as the circular KAAP pavilion, built with 92% recycled or bio-based materials. As the surrounding landscape is completed, KAAP will add more than housing alone: the routes, planting, and pavilion will make the area more accessible and inviting, creating space for residents and visitors alike to walk, cycle, relax, and spend time by the IJ. Read more about the project here: https://lnkd.in/eZam_kyj Amvest | COD | development pioneers | Orange Architects | NEXT architects | Studioninedots | DELVA Landscape Architecture / Urbanism | City of Amsterdam | UBA Bouw | Projectontwikkeling | Groothuis Bouwgroep | Lagemaat BV | Sebastian van Damme | Emile Hoens | Jeroen Musch

NELSON is a finalist for the Architectuurcentrum CASA Heuvelinkprijs!
 Set on the banks of the Rhine, close to Arnhem's city center, NELSON completes a series of buildings along the floodplains, arranged like a 'string of pearls' across the dike landscape. Its hexagonal floor plan and sharply beveled façade planes give the tower its recognizable presence on the riverfront. NELSON comprises 93 homes, ranging from affordable apartments to penthouses. Alternating floor plans create staggered balconies that wrap around the tower, offering all residents optimal views of the river, the city, or the surrounding landscape. Inside, a diamond-shaped structural core mirrors the load-bearing façade, allowing the layouts to remain flexible: everything between the core and the façade can be reconfigured to meet future needs. Strongly rooted in its setting, NELSON responds to the natural height differences of the dike, connecting the raised dike level with the lower ground at the base of the retaining wall. Its brick façade is made with clay sourced from nearby riverbanks - so close, that the source can almost be pointed out from the building itself. Vote for NELSON: https://lnkd.in/ewNQF_-V Learn more about the project: https://lnkd.in/edQxuyGK VanWonen | LOF Landschapsarchitecten | Van Grunsven Groep Bouw en Ontwikkeling | Aveco de Bondt | Bouwvisie Raadgevende Ingenieurs BV | Sebastian van Damme

Can you guess how many letters will appear on the ceiling of KJ Den Haag? The new entrance hall for KJ Den Haag is rapidly taking shape, including the 9000 m² double-curved wooden ceiling! Across its surface, almost 16,000 individual letters are currently being carefully mounted in place and will form excerpts from the Declaration of Human Rights, paying homage to The Hague's identity as the City of Justice. Outside, two residential towers are linked by a central “valley” of stepped outdoor spaces, while the square is being activated with added greenery and a restaurant pavilion, transforming it into a lively public space that connects to Koekamp Park. Read more about the project here: https://lnkd.in/dCrX8XUv JP van Eesteren | Synchroon | Amvest | DELVA Landscape Architecture / Urbanism | IMd Raadgevende Ingenieurs | Nelissen ingenieursbureau | Techniplan Adviseurs B.V. | Metabolic

Valckensteyn is a finalist for the Architizer A+Awards in the Affordable Housing category!
 As Rotterdam's first mass-timber residential building, Valckensteyn offers a vision for urban living where sustainability, affordability, and high quality of living reinforce one another. Bringing 82 affordable rental homes to Pendrecht, the project is built on the site of the former Valckensteyn, with the new timber design referring to its characteristic staggered volume. Each apartment includes a west-facing balcony nearly two meters deep, adding ample outdoor space, while travertine at the base and timber above bring a calming, tactile quality to the building. Integrated nesting boxes in the facade support biodiversity, and a park-like garden completes the design with communal green areas and natural play spaces. Read more about the project here: https://lnkd.in/d4EE-_2 Vote for Valckensteyn: https://shorturl.at/iyfZf Woonstad Rotterdam | binderholz group | Buro Bouwfysica | LAP Landscape & Urban Design | Linkwood | Lois Advies by Studibo | Nieman Raadgevende Ingenieurs | Pieters | Waal | Sebastian van Damme

Why did it turn out this way? Today we celebrate our Partner Architect, Johanne Borthne, and the launch of 'Hvorfor ble det sånn?’, a publication she co-edited with Kenneth Dahlgren, sociologist and' Head of Urban Development and Innovation at Aspelin Reitan Eiendom, and Even Smith Wergeland, architectural historian and associate professor at The Oslo School of Architecture and Design. The book asks how specific buildings and urban spaces in Norway came to be the way they are, and what that reveals about the different ideas, priorities, and decisions that have influenced  them over time. Through concrete examples by different authors, it traces how architecture and urban development are influenced by governance, economics, history, culture, competing interests, and seemingly small decisions that can leave a lasting mark on a city. For anyone interested in understanding how the built environment is negotiated, contested, and accumulated, the book offers a valuable perspective on Norwegian architecture and urban development. Available now via: https://lnkd.in/eTwXyq_7 Even Smith Wergeland | Kenneth Dahlgren | Fagbokforlaget

We're hiring! Starting in August 2026, we're welcoming architecture and/or engineering students to our Floating Office Rotterdam for a five- to six-month internship. You’ll work with our teams on a variety of projects across different stages and gain hands-on experience in an international architecture and design firm. Along the way, you’ll have plenty of room to ask questions, make models, sharpen your skills, and be part of a creative, open-minded team. If you’re curious, proactive, and eager to learn and grow with us, we'd be happy to hear from you! Read more and apply here: https://lnkd.in/dBX-EJqs

A new cultural destination for the Tramkade in Den Bosch! In collaboration with artist and designer Maarten Baas, we are working on a new mixed-use cultural cluster for Kavel 9, a key site within the wider Tramkade development in Den Bosch. Developed with RED Company and to be built by Red Construction, the project brings together spaces for art, culture, youth programming, and living. The design proposal draws on the Tramkade's industrial character, with the ground floor intended to accommodate two cultural programs. The first is the Maarten Baas cluster, comprising a studio, workshop, and publicly accessible exhibition space. More than a workplace, it is conceived as an environment for exchange, intended to support young talent, education, and collaboration with local cultural institutions. The second is the renewed Urban Scene, a youth culture hub, with a skate hall, food and beverage spaces, performance space, workshops, and educational facilities. Above this plinth, the design proposal includes a mobility hub, a roof garden, and two residential volumes. "We don’t see culture as an add-on, but as the foundation for good urban development," says Nanne De Ru, "and with Maarten Baas, this project becomes a cultural anchor that strengthens Den Bosch as a place to live." Gemeente 's-Hertogenbosch | RED Company | Red Construction

Contractor selected for the Bibliotheek Rotterdam!

 Exciting news for the renovation of Rotterdam’s Central Library: following the move to the temporary location at Librijesteeg in January, preparations for the transformation of the library on Hoogstraat have been well underway behind the scenes. After a formal tendering process, the City of Rotterdam has awarded the project to BINX Smartility to carry out the renovation. 
 Another milestone in realizing the city’s new living room: a place where every Rotterdammer can expand their knowledge not only through books and media, but also through conversation, exchange, and discovery. The existing building will be stripped back to its concrete skeleton and completely rebuilt into a light, engaging, and comfortable place. Along with a completely new façade, all systems will be renewed, with major sustainability upgrades including thermal energy storage and a water buffer system. The basement will also be expanded to accommodate a spacious public bicycle parking facility. As our Partner Architect Albert Takashi Richters explains: "The many types of spaces within the Library make it a true people’s palace. It’s a monument of the future."

 The renewed library will include workspaces, studios, workshop and podcast rooms, educational spaces, and a public bicycle parking facility, while preserving the elements that have made the building so recognizable. The result will be an open, light-filled, city-connected living room for Rotterdam, with reopening planned for summer 2029. Tim Versnel Bibliotheek Rotterdam BINX Smartility | AtelierOslo | Lundhagem | Buro Happold | DELVA Landscape Architecture / Urbanism | Gemeente Rotterdam | Markthal Gemeente Rotterdam - Stadsontwikkeling

Valckensteyn among the finalists for the Rotterdam Architectuurprijs 2026! We are proud to see Valckensteyn recognized alongside other fantastic projects in the Rotterdam Architectuurprijs 2026, organized by AIR - Architectuur Instituut Rotterdam, highlighting the range of projects being realized in the city. As Rotterdam's first mass-timber residential building, Valckensteyn delivers 82 affordable rental homes in Pendrecht. The project reinterprets the former Valckensteyn, a postwar residential building that shaped the neighborhood from 1971 to 2012, through a new timber structure. The design brings back the original building's characteristic staggered volume and uses prefabricated cross-laminated timber elements on a 7.2-meter grid that significantly reduce material waste and support a more efficient construction process. Timber surfaces are exposed only where protected, while durable fiber-cement panels and travertine take over where resilience is needed. Together with its park-like garden and integrated biodiversity measures, Valckensteyn shows that affordable housing does not have to come at the expense of a pleasant, green, and sustainable living environment. Read more about the project here: https://lnkd.in/d4EE-_2 Vote for Valckensteyn in the Publieksprijs: https://lnkd.in/er2xudVx Woonstad Rotterdam | binderholz group | Buro Bouwfysica | LAP Landscape & Urban Design | Linkwood | Lois Advies by Studibo | Nieman Raadgevende Ingenieurs | Pieters | Sebastian van Damme | Waal | 3MP - film & photography | Koen Meershoek

A 'valley' with a view – construction update on KJ Den Haag! As a new gateway to the city, our design for KJ Den Haag introduces a new station hall and two residential towers, linked by a central 'valley' of stepped outdoor spaces that open panoramic views across The Hague. Fluted, rectilinear columns in lightweight concrete lend the facades a character reminiscent of the formal classicism of The Hague’s administrative architecture. On ground level, the square will be activated through new landscaping by DELVA Landscape Architecture / Urbanism, the addition of a restaurant pavilion, and a more fluid connection to Koekamp Park. Read more about the project here: https://lnkd.in/dCrX8XUv JP van Eesteren | Synchroon | Amvest | DELVA Landscape Architecture / Urbanism | IMd Raadgevende Ingenieurs | Nelissen ingenieursbureau | Techniplan Adviseurs | Metabolic | David Rozemeyer Fotografie