Excellent facades: great in sustainability and pleasing to the eye

For more than 60 years, Scheldebouw has been the address for excellent facades, which can be found all over the world. "Every year we deliver several major projects," CEO Jalal Fitoury explains. "This has produced a great reference list, with iconic (high-rise) projects such as the Shard in London (UK), the Varso Tower in Warsaw (Poland), ONE Bishopgate Plaza in London (UK), the MOL Campus in Budapest (Hungary) and the Booking.com headquarters in Amsterdam. Since our founding in 1958, we have become a permanent partner of top architects and developers from all over the world. Demanding clients, who constantly want to distinguish themselves. Facades are defining images for their buildings."

"We invariably translate the architect's design ideas into a technically feasible and manufacturable façade that meets in detail (1) the architect's aesthetic wishes, (2) the developer's budget requirements and (3) the performance requirements from international building regulations, such as the Dutch Building Code," Fitoury said. "For example, with regard to fire resistance and wind and water tightness. A complex challenge, which our subject specialists master to perfection. Our approximately 400 colleagues search daily for the optimum in aesthetics, technology and manufacturability, making even the wildest ideas realistic."

Maximum security

Because all Scheldebouw designs are custom made, performance has not been demonstrated before, Fitoury emphasizes. "To still offer clients maximum certainty, we work with 'milestones' in our process. For example, an important milestone is that each new development is extensively tested in our factory. This is how we demonstrate that the performance we agreed on at the front end will actually be achieved." Those who choose Scheldebouw are also assured of one contact person, one supplier and one guarantee party for the complete facade. From advice and design to production, assembly, mounting and maintenance and including coordination with all sub-suppliers.

Efficient use of materials

Anno 2022, sustainability is an important topic, Fitoury knows. Also when it comes to building facades. "Our business model fits this seamlessly. Because we custom design and produce each facade, we are not dependent on standard systems. Instead, we invariably look for solutions that use materials efficiently and smartly. We use the minimum material required, within the aesthetically imposed frameworks and without compromising on quality and performance. By also offering facade maintenance to our clients, the technical lifespan of our facades can be extended considerably and the need to replace materials soon after the warranty period disappears."

In renovation projects, Scheldebouw actively seeks ways to integrate new designs as well as existing building and facade parts. A good example of this is the Citi Tower in London (UK), of which Scheldebouw also made the original facade over 20 years ago. "The challenge in this project in particular is to fit the new facade into the existing facade parts," says Fitoury. "Which parts can be retained and integrated into the new design? And what can we do with the remaining materials? The facades of the renovation project on Koningskade in The Hague and the Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed in Amersfoort are also being renewed in this sustainable way."

EPD for custom made facades

To demonstrate the operational and material-related carbon footprint of its facades, Scheldebouw started a process several years ago to achieve demonstrable and certified calculations. These efforts were recently rewarded with a certified Environmental Product Declaration (EPD). "This makes us the first company in the world that can issue a certified Environmental Product Declaration on its custom made facades," said a proud Fitoury. "This allows us to show developers even more clearly how our facades contribute to the sustainability issue and what impact certain design choices have." Scheldebouw's 'Closed Cavity Facade' is also very sustainable, efficiently combining the performance of the double-skin facade and the ease of maintenance of the single-skin facade, resulting in high performance and low maintenance costs.

Scheldebouw is one of the three "main brands" within the Permasteelisa Group, the largest facade builder in the world with over 5,700 employees and 40 branches in 30 countries.