The Flow

The Flow® focuses on user well-being

An entrance hall with a 50 square meter LED screen, a fitness room with a sauna and hammam, an elevator with LED screens, a roof terrace with a view over 't IJ and the latest innovations such as facial recognition and sensor technology. Flow Houthavens in Amsterdam promises to be an ultramodern building, where users will be surprised and in a flow come. “It will be a building where the user is always central, where people should feel really happy and that is also very sustainable. It is great to be able to participate in such a project”, says Theo de Boer, director of Valstar Simonis.

An entrance hall with a 50 square meter LED screen, a fitness room with a sauna and hammam, an elevator with LED screens, a roof terrace with a view over 't IJ and the latest innovations such as facial recognition and sensor technology. Flow Houthavens in Amsterdam promises to be an ultramodern building, where users will be surprised and get into a flow. “It will be a building where the user is always central, where people should feel really happy and that is also very sustainable. It is great to be able to participate in such a project”, says Theo de Boer, director of Valstar Simonis.

The Flow ® is an initiative of architectural firm MVSA Architects and project developer ToBeDeveloped. Flow Houthavens is a 'proof of concept' for these initiators. If it turns out to be a success, they will roll out the concept further on existing and new buildings in and outside the Netherlands.

According to the: “The special thing about The Flow® is that it really has an idea behind it. It will not only be a very sustainable building with a BREEAM Excellent certification, but also a building where everything revolves around the well-being of the user. The Flow® will be one of the first buildings in the Netherlands to receive a so-called WELL certification. Where BREEAM looks at the impact of a building on the environment, WELL looks at the health of the users.”

WELL Building Standard

The WELL Building Standard provides guidelines for seven categories: air, water, food, light, fitness, comfort and mind. Theo explains: “For example, the company restaurant of The Flow® mainly serves healthy and fresh food, there are sufficient water taps in the building, a lot of attention is paid to the acoustics and the elevator is 'hidden' to encourage the use of the stairs. The technical installations recognize you when you enter a workspace and automatically adjust the lighting and temperature to your preference. That lighting also takes your biological clock into account, which will make the users feel much more comfortable.”

Less absenteeism

In order to be able to comply with the WELL guidelines, considerable investments have to be made. An investment that, according to Theo, pays for itself many times over. “A company's accommodation costs are often about 2 to 3% and the wage costs up to 60 or 70%. A healthy working environment ensures more productivity and less absenteeism, so an investment in that working environment is very interesting.

In addition, it is becoming increasingly difficult to bind good people to your company. A sustainable, healthy and pleasant working environment can make all the difference. Cutting back on that is a typical case of 'penny wise, pound foolish'. ”

High ambitions

Valstar Simonis has been closely involved in the prestigious project in the Amsterdam Houthavens from the start. “A nice collaboration”, describes Theo. “The clients have high ambitions and it is a great challenge to go along with them. We have a lot of knowledge about the latest innovations and are happy to show you what is possible.”

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