Woodyshousing

Woodyshousing, founded in 2014 by the entrepreneurial duo Theo and Beate Bouwman, operates from Soest, Netherlands, addressing the pronounced housing shortage with a focus on sustainable, modular construction. The company's inception was sparked in 2012 by the founders' personal experience while searching for suitable student accommodation for their daughter in Amsterdam, which highlighted a gap in the market for affordable, quality living spaces. Leveraging over 40 years of combined experience in process technology, the energy sector, financial services, and ecological building, the founders conceptualized a comprehensive housing solution.

The firm's core business revolves around the development and production of modular homes made from cross-laminated timber (CLT). This integrated approach encompasses concept and project development, manufacturing, technology integration, property management, and community building. Woodyshousing's business model is vertically integrated, covering project development, industrial production, and direct rental to end-users, which allows for greater control over sustainability, speed, quality, and affordability. The company generates revenue through the development and realization of buildings for its own portfolio and for third parties, and has also developed concepts for short stays, wellness hotels, and co-working spaces.

The flagship product, the "WOODY®" studio, is a prefabricated module constructed from solid CLT wood, designed to be adaptable for various demographics including students, young professionals, families, and seniors. These fully furnished studios feature a kitchen, bathroom, and smart design elements like keyless entry and low-energy consumption systems. The modular system allows for stacking up to eight stories high without extra structural support, and units are produced in a factory setting, ensuring quality control and rapid assembly. This method significantly reduces construction time and on-site disruption compared to traditional building. A key milestone was the placement of a prototype at The Green Village on the TU Delft campus in 2016, followed by projects in Katwijk, Utrecht, and Almere.

Keywords: modular housing, sustainable construction, cross-laminated timber, affordable housing, real estate development, student accommodation, property technology, circular economy, prefabricated homes, real estate investment, community building, urban development, smart homes, energy-efficient buildings, modular architecture, housing solutions, eco-friendly construction, temporary housing, permanent housing, wooden buildings