Sustainability Report
Embodied carbon
BSH20A Stories embodies a deeply integrated approach to low-carbon and circular design. While the project was not submitted for any formal sustainability certification, its environmental strategies — spanning material choice, energy systems, and adaptive reuse potential — were developed independently of rating frameworks.
Stories achieves a significant reduction in embodied carbon through its extensive use of renewable, bio-based materials and precision prefabrication. Upon completion (2021), it became the tallest hybrid timber building in the Netherlands, combining a 10-storey timber superstructure with a three-storey prefabricated concrete base housing the foundation and parking levels.
The structural system consists of cross-laminated timber (CLT) portal frames manufactured by Derix (Germany and the Netherlands) from FSC-certified spruce. Approximately 1,000 cubic metres of timber was used in total — 770 cubic metres was sourced within 200 kilometres of Roermond. This locally produced material sequesters around 600 tonnes of CO2, equivalent to the emissions that would have been generated by a similar concrete structure.
When combined with the embodied carbon savings from transport and construction logistics, the total reduction is estimated at 697 tonnes of CO2. Nearly all primary materials — timber, concrete, and steel — are connected through dry, reversible joints, ensuring future reuse.
Timber ceilings are left exposed to express the structure’s craftsmanship, while acoustic comfort is maintained through decoupled connections, foam-concrete mass layers, and demountable plasterboard linings. Together, these measures demonstrate that high performance, user comfort, and carbon reduction can coexist within a single construction system.
Key low-carbon materials and suppliers
- Cross-laminated spruce timber: X-LAM, CU-PEFC-805190 — Derix (Germany / Netherlands)
- Window frames: Mahonie FSC and Meranti FSC hardwoods, FSC Chain of Custody CU-COC-816255 — Timmerfabriek (Genemuiden, Netherlands)
- Facade cladding: Platowood Spruce, FSC-C011088 — Platowood (Arnhem, Netherlands)
- Outdoor decking: Pine beams with hardwood boards, FSC-certified — Flink (Wormer, Netherlands)
Operational Emissions / Energy
Stories operates as a gas-free, near-zero-energy building with an Energy Performance Coefficient (EPC) of 0.09 kWh/m², far below the Dutch legal threshold at the time of permitting. This performance is achieved through a compact building form, layered facade design, and a diverse set of integrated systems.
Energy and comfort systems:
- Ground-based thermal energy storage (ATES)
- Connection to district heating
- Heat pump using return air
- Photovoltaic panels and solar collectors
- Shower-water heat recovery
- Underfloor heating with high-efficiency control
- Triple-glazed windows and CO2-controlled mechanical ventilation with heat recovery
- Electric-vehicle charging points in the parking garage
The building’s multi-layered envelope acts as both climatic buffer and ecological habitat. Balconies, winter gardens, and 57 double-height vegetation units provide shading, improve indoor comfort, and enhance biodiversity. Roofs are covered with sedum, which captures rainwater and mitigates urban heat gain, while an on-site retention system can absorb 60 millimetres of rainfall per hour, easing pressure on the municipal drainage network.
Although a full Life-Cycle Assessment (LCA) has not been conducted, the building’s operational performance indicates alignment with low-carbon and climate-resilient objectives through reduced energy demand, renewable integration, and robust passive design.
Afterlife
Yes. Stories was designed from the outset according to Open Building principles, ensuring that its structure, layout, and services can adapt to future uses. The CLT portal frame system provides a clear and regular grid that allows floor plans to be reconfigured both horizontally and vertically. Each level includes redundant entrances and a centralised utility core, so entire floors or sections can be subdivided, combined, or converted for different functions — residential, workspace, or otherwise — without structural intervention.
Generous ceiling heights of 2.87 and 6.12 metres further support programmatic flexibility, enabling mezzanine additions or future typological shifts. This adaptability extends the building’s lifespan and ensures that it can accommodate changing demographics, working patterns, or community needs long after its initial occupancy.
Yes. Circularity was a guiding principle in both design and construction. All major structural components — timber, prefabricated concrete, and steel — are connected using dry, non-permanent joints, allowing them to be demounted, repaired, or reused in the future. Prefabrication was employed to minimise on-site waste and to ensure that components could be reassembled elsewhere with minimal loss of material integrity.
The CLT panels, steel framework, and facade modules were detailed for reversibility, and all materials are compatible with circular supply chains through FSC or PEFC certification and traceable production. This design logic enables both partial and full deconstruction, allowing Stories to function as a material bank for future construction — a building conceived not as a fixed object, but as a resource in continuous use.
Key products in low carbon design
