Five questions for

Over the past five years we have achieved a great deal and much has changed. We have grown significantly and important steps have been taken to make circular construction a reality. This brings us closer to a sustainable living environment, for today and for the future.

Several people have been closely involved in these developments and in the growth of Stichting NMD. Over a period of ten weeks we will share the perspectives of ten of these people through a short interview based on five fixed questions. In this way, we present ten perspectives on five years of Stichting NMD.

This week have five questions for Niels Ruijter.

Niels Ruijter is an environmental scientist and has spent the past 25 years advocating for a positive contribution to the environment and for combating climate change. He has worked for the aluminium industry and for Bouwend Nederland, and since June 2018 he has been director of NVTB for the construction materials industry. He emphasises the importance of consistent terminology and clear agreements between manufacturers, builders and clients in order to work effectively together on sustainability and circularity.

Niels has been involved in BMNL from the very beginning, where he represents a broad group from the construction materials industry.

1. How did you first come into contact with Stichting NMD?

From the very beginning, when the foundation was transformed from Construction Quality Foundation into the Dutch Environmental Database Foundation. Defining the objective was essential and created a solid connection with the various parties that remain involved to this day.

2. In your experience, what has changed the most in your work or in the sector over the past five years?

The rapid acceleration of digitalisation. This is also highly important for the Dutch Environmental Database. Digitalisation is an essential means of increasing efficiency.

3. What change or development would you still like to see?

Greater uniformity in the market when it comes to sustainability. We are only achieving limited results in terms of scaling up because there are so many different systems for working towards sustainability.

4. What are you proud to have achieved together with Stichting NMD?

The collaboration on the societal theme of sustainability. This is precisely where the strength of Stichting NMD lies. The parties involved also have a particular responsibility in this respect. They are well positioned to inform their organisation and/or stakeholder group about how the system works and the relevant context.

5. Where do you see Stichting NMD in five years?

Stichting NMD will still manage the system and the Assessment Methods for sustainability designated under building regulations. The data for this will be shared digitally, more efficiently than today, with parties identifying themselves and adhering to the rules for the use of environmental data.

The foundation will be recognised as a valuable organisation that places great importance on cooperation and development. Other EU Member States will look to Stichting NMD and its approach as an example.

This interview is part of a series. Over a period of ten weeks, we will publish a new interview every Thursday.

Read all interviews on our lustrum page