'Factory builders don't fight each other out of the tent, but work together'

Instead of fighting each other, home builders with their own factories should work together more. So say three construction and real estate experts in the latest episode of Bureau Stoer.

They respond to statements made by Peter Hutten, ceo at Van Wijnen, one of the first Dutch builders with a factory. In the trade journal Cobouw , he analyzed that BAM's factory is moderately profitable due to the fact that they build with wood and not concrete.

"Nonsense," responds Jan Willem van de Groep in the latest episode of the podcast Bureau Stoer. He emphasizes that the number of homes that come out of the Van Wijnen factory each year is also nothing to write home about.

Listen to the podcast here:

Building Balance's program manager urges factory-builders to work together. That would be good not only for their own production line, but for the entire Dutch housing industry.

"Who has the ball in their court? With the 15 largest companies with factories. They should work together to explain to policymakers what conditions they need to scale up." Van de Groep believes that many factory residences "break down" due to lengthy procedures and believes the government is to blame.

Dramatic for housing construction

Dick van Ginkel, innovation manager at TBI Woonlab, calls Hutten's words "not so fancy. He, too, encourages more collaboration. "Instead, most factory builders hold their cards to their chests. That's unwise. Instead, construction companies with factories should cooperate more and produce interchangeable building elements, as has been common practice in the auto industry for decades."

"Collaborate more? We already do," Mark Denslagen spokesman at Van Wijnen reveals when asked. He notes that the builders already work together toward the government with parties such as Heijmans, VolkerWessels, Plegt-Vos and BAM. He does not believe that construction companies are fighting each other's battles. Denslagen emphasizes that Van Wijnen is very happy with the number of 1,032 completed factory homes in 2025. "With that, a magic limit has been reached."

Hopeful about new minister VRO

Several items pass by in Bureau Stoer. For example, real estate expert Nicole Maarsen is concerned about the developments surrounding Vesteda. The housing investor sees investors, accounting for a combined €4 billion, getting out en masse. "This is dramatic for the housing market. If you have to sell 15,000 homes because investors don't like it in the Netherlands anymore, we really do have a problem here. Whether that leads to lower housing production? Yes. To bring large housing projects to 'start construction,' you need institutional capital."

Maarsen speaks well of Mona Keijzer's successor as Minister of Housing and Spatial Planning Elanor Boekholt O' Sullivan. "Although she is not from the sector, I am hopeful. It is someone who wants to listen and learn."

Van de Groep concurs, noting the Netherlands has never had a minister of construction with expert knowledge in recent decades. "Stef Blok was an accountant, Hugo de Jonge an administrator and 'even' Eberhard van der Laan came from 'outside'. He was a lawyer."

"...Boekholt O' Sullivan strikes me as an extremely sensible woman. In my opinion, she is quite capable of picking things up quickly. However, she did come off meager in the budget. After all, she has almost no money."

This article is a condensed version of the latest episode of the podcast Bureau Stoer. You can listen back to the entire episode here.