"Bio-based building materials go beyond a price issue"

Sidati NV is concentrated on wood and bio-based building, as they are also contractor of The Exploded View Beyond Building. "That is a design by Biobased Creations," Dewispelaere clarifies. "We helped take it down in the Netherlands and then rebuilt it on the Kamp C sites."

"For us, The Exploded View is an exhibition that mainly inspires," she continues. "It is a travelling exhibition in the shape of a house, with the intention of being able to display materials. Ecological materials, organic materials, but also recycled materials, to show how things might be different in the construction industry."

Pleasant materials

With bio-based building materials, according to Dewispelaere, things can be different. "Such materials are much nicer to use. They are pleasant to handle, pleasant to place. The classic pictures with the gas mask and a suit: we don't need that. The health of the people living in the house, but also the health of the people installing it, are important benefits."

Many may still have the idea that this comes at a price. "The price question is still being asked," Dewispelaere begins. "But we are certainly able to refute that at the moment. It's not so much a price question, because I am convinced that we will be very competitive at the end." That is also because there is more to it than just price. "With a private home, it's not so much about what the cost is, but how you want to put your home and what the priorities are. Just think about those advantages about health, recyclability and so on."

Moreover, the demand for bio-based materials is also becoming more focused. "You feel more and more that all parties are asking where the products come from," he says. Bio-based materials, they can just grow locally, in our Belgian fields. "If we buy a regional product now, that could definitely be an added value."

Attestation

In terms of attestation, bio-based building materials can still make strides, although the story is more nuanced than that. "On the one hand, we have to bet on attestation, because we have to gain the trust of people who have to use it," says Claire Dewispelaire. "Along the other hand, bio-based building materials require a lot of knowledge. That's where the key for me lies in being involved quickly. The faster we as producers or builders are involved in the process, the faster we can throw our knowledge and expertise into the group to use the product. For me, it is an and-and story to be able to get rid of the prejudices around bio-based construction."

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