“Bouw met Bamboe!” (Building with Bamboo!) is a three-day event scheduled for June 19-21, 2024, at BlueCity in Rotterdam, consisting of a symposium, workshops, and an exhibition.

Despite the many environmental benefits of bamboo, it is not widely used in practice. Most Dutch designers and architects are unfamiliar with bamboo’s unique properties and construction methods. To address this, world experts in bamboo cultivation, design, construction, and engineering will come to Rotterdam to provide lectures and workshops at “Bouw met Bamboe!”. This will educate participants and give them the confidence to work with this amazing material.

A centralized platform will initiate bamboo architecture in the Netherlands. The event is specifically intended for people interested in using it as a construction material for architecture. It includes Dutch bamboo producers, building product manufacturers, architects, designers, engineers, carpenters, as well as students who are interested in or currently working with it. Broadly the event is intended for anyone interested to design and work with the material in the context of Dutch architecture. It will bring interested individuals on a common interdisciplinary platform to talk, exchange ideas and contribute to the shared development of bamboo as a building material for architecture.

With the Netherlands currently going through an acute housing shortage and the government aiming to reduce greenhouse emissions by 2050, bamboo has the potential to be a game-changer. This fast-growing, versatile, biobased, and renewable material can very successfully help fight the current Dutch housing crisis, while also meeting sustainability goals.

Bamboo can mature within three to eight years. It grows well in poor soils and even in Europe, including the Netherlands. Bamboo absorbs up to fifty tons of CO2 per year, more effective than most timber species. Its dryness and ease of machining is ideal for rapid and efficient prefabrication. Its cultivation is cited as one of the hundred most effective measures against climate change. It has great structural performance and is considered almost as strong as steel. It has already proven its worth in Southeast Asia and South America, where architects and designers have created aesthetically pleasing architecture with high living standards using this incredible material. These innovative constructions include bamboo roofs and bridges spanning as long as 30 meters.

“Bouw met Bamboe!” aims to delve deeper into these advantages, providing comprehensive ways of exploring bamboo’s transformative potential.

Along with Atelier Nomadic, Studio Walden, and Maria Piels Architects, Summum Engineering is enthusiastic about the potential of bamboo in the building industry. With generous support from the Creative Industries Fund, Summum Engineering initiated the “Bouw met Bamboe!” event. These talented organizations were invited to collaborate due to their remarkable work and shared passion for bamboo. Together, we aim to bring together individuals from various fields who share our interest in this versatile material, providing a platform for its collaborative development in architecture.

We look forward to welcoming you to our event and are excited for you to join us in our journey to revolutionize the use of bamboo in the Dutch built environment.