APPENDIX C

BUBBLEDECK SYSTEM

1. General Information To accompany each entry and to be completed by the National Organiser Name of the Company: BubbleDeck Netherlands B.V. Entry name/Project Title: BubbleDeck floor system - An innovative sustainable floor system

Name of Contact Person (in organisation entering for award): Ing. A.C. Fuchs Deputy Director Address: Admiraal Banckertweg 22 P.O. Box 150 2300 AD Leiden The Netherlands Telephone: Facsimile: 0031 71 521 03 56 0031 71 362 49 51

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Brief Description of the company’s business: BubbleDeck Netherlands B.V. is a SME incorporated in 1997 by Mr. R. Plug, General director. The company developed an innovative sustainable floor system, the BubbleDeck floor system, on base of the invention of Civ.eng. J. Breuning, Denmark. BubbleDeck Netherlands B.V. is the supplier of the BubbleDeck floor system and takes care, out of its office in Leiden, of the marketing, the technical advice and the design, the production and execution guidance and, finally, the delivery. The actual production of the prefabricated components is carried out by specialist concrete element factories at the order of and with guidance from BubbleDeck Netherlands B.V. which also takes care of the guidance of the assembly of these components at the construction site. For the application of the floor system in Belgium and Luxembourg BubbleDeck Belgium B.V.B.A. was incorporated. This company, an initiative of BubbleDeck Netherlands B.V., is now operational out of Brussels. Brief description of entry/project: BubbleDeck is a new innovative and sustainable floor system to be used as a self-supporting concrete floor. The application of the BubbleDeck floor system in the Netherlands is manifested as the world-wide first application. The BubbleDeck floor system can be used for storey floors, roof floors and ground floor floors. A BubbleDeck floor is a flat slab floor, therefore without beams and column heads. The principal characteristic is that hollow plastic spheres are incorporated in the floor, clamped in a factory-made reinforcement structure. This reinforcement structure constitutes at the same time the upper and lower reinforcement of the concrete floor. The reinforcement structure with spherical shapes and possibly a thin concrete shell as precast slab floor are supplied to the construction site in factory-made units with a maximum width of 3 metres, they are installed on site and are assembled by installing connecting rods and by pouring concrete. After the concrete has set, the floor is ready to be used. The ratio of the diameter of the plastic spheres to the thickness of the floor is such that a 35 % saving is achieved on the material or concrete consumption for the floor in comparison with a solid concrete floor of the same thickness. The saving on weight obtained in this way has the result that a BubbleDeck floor can provide the required load-bearing capacity at a smaller thickness. This leads to a further advantage, resulting in a saving of 40 to 50 % of the material consumption in the floor construction. This is not the last of the advantages of the BubbleDeck floor system: because of the lower weight of the floor system itself, also the supporting constructions such as columns and foundations can be less heavy. This can result eventually in a total weight or material saving on the building construction of up to 50 %. Award entered for (please tick): Management Award for Sustainable Development Product Award for Sustainable Development XX Technology Award for Sustainable Development International Partnership Award for Sustainable Development Summary Assessment of Entry by National Organiser

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To be completed by the National Organiser only National Organiser contact point with knowledge of this entry (Name, Organisation): Date: 1. Has the entry been visited by the National Organisers (or their representatives)? By Whom? When? NO 2. In your judgement, what are the greatest merits of this entry? Why should this entry win a European Award? The BubbleDeck floor system is a complete new invention within the construction industry which, compared with traditional alternatives, makes a substantial and measurable contribution to the reduction of the environmental impact. The integrated advantages result in tangible decrease of building costs and lead to environmental, social and economic benefits up to a level of 50 % compared with traditional alternatives, without extra investments. Summarising, it can be said that the BubbleDeck floor system has a very high potential to win a European Award.

A typical building structure with the BubbleDeck floor system

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3. What are the innovative aspects of this entry? The innovative aspect in comparison with similar floor systems consists of: • the use of hollow plastic spheres in the concrete floor, where the concrete can usually be missed

(from a constructive point of view), clamped in a factory-made reinforcement structure, that results in a saving of up to 50 % on material, in other words: a 50 % greater material efficiency is achieved

• the BubbleDeck floor spans at all sides and due to its lower weight at can give at a smaller thickness the same performance as similar traditional floor systems, such as a solid concrete floor, a so-called precast filigran slab floor or a hollow core slab floor

• the BubbleDeck floor is a flat slab floor, therefore without the beams and column heads which similar floor systems need

• the BubbleDeck floor is manufactured in an industrial way and is supplied to the construction site in large modules which, compared with similar floor systems, can be assembled into a whole using far less energy

• the BubbleDeck floor can be realised as a monolithic floor, ready for immediate use, while similar floor systems need a extra floor layer of 60 to 80 mm to be applied on the construction floor

• still, the BubbleDeck floor is not a rigid construction system and, compared with similar floor systems, offers flexibility for various applications, so that the architect, the structural engineer and the building contractor can use this floor system without any problem

• the BubbleDeck floor results in a substantial reduction of the building time, so that the building activities cause less environmental hindrance for the surrounding area.

Cross section BubbleDeck floor system 4. What are the environmental and resource-saving benefits of this entry? The BubbleDeck floor system has the following environmental and resource-saving benefits: • a saving on the concrete consumption for the floor, and therefore on the primary raw materials

sand and gravel and on the raw material cement up to 50 %, with the additional environmental advantage that smaller amounts of concrete have to be transported by road and smaller amounts of cement, sand and gravel have to be transported by road and by water

• a major contribution to the objective of sustainable building by the saving on the use of primary raw materials, the flexibility offered in the lay-out of the building and the making of passages and recesses and, finally: in the event of demolition a substantially smaller amount of concrete granulate and recyclable plastic spheres which do not adhere to the concrete

• a substantial saving on underlying constructions, such as columns and foundations, so that the total saving on materials, and therefore on weight, of the concrete building construction can be as high as 50 % and the foundation can be accordingly lighter

• an up to 40 to 50 % saving on energy and emissions concerning the production and transport of primary and secondary building materials for the construction of floors in buildings

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• a reduction of the construction time by the large dimensions of the BubbleDeck elements with a maximum width of 3 metres and a length, currently limited only by the transport, of up to 12 metres, resulting in less and more efficient transport by road

• a better use of the hoisting capacity during the execution due to the large and light BubbleDeck elements, resulting in the environmental advantage of less noise hindrance

• simple installation of lines and pipes, either under or incorporated in the floor, resulting in a saving on usually environmentally hazardous plastics and metals, such as PVC pipes, copper, lead, iron and cast iron

• the possibility of realising a monolithic concrete floor ready for use, therefore without extra floorlayer and pressure layer to bear stability forces in the plane of the floor, resulting in another 25 to 35 % saving on the raw materials sand and cement in relation to comparable alternatives.

BubbleDeck elements after production 5. What are the economic benefits of this entry (eg cost competitiveness with alternatives, employment impacts)? The economic benefits of the BubbleDeck floor systems are as follows: • 40 tot 50 % increase of the cost-effectiveness of constructions in the building industry because of:

• 40 to 50 % less weight than a traditional concrete floor or precast filigran slab floor • a saving on reinforcement steel • a substantial saving on labour for the adjustment of reinforcement bars on site and the

labour and time required for concrete casting, also resulting in less hindrance for the surrounding area

• the load-bearing capacity in two directions, supported directly by columns or load-bearing walls

• the use of floors without beams and column heads • the market volume of construction floors in the Netherlands is circa 29 million m² on an annual

basis, of which about 12.5 million m² consists of solid floors, including precast filigran slab floors. From a constructive point of view, the BubbleDeck floor system can completely replace the entire volume of this application. Further on BubbleDeck floors can also replace a substantial percentage of the hollow core slab floors which, in the Netherlands, are used in a volume of approximately 9.3 million m² on an annual basis.

• the above mentioned figures can be extrapolated in a equal way to a European and even

worldwide scale. The absolute effect of the application of the BubbleDeck floor system on this scale leads to tremendous positive effects in the framework of sustainable development.

• the impact on employment is that the application of the BubbleDeck floor system makes it more attractive for employers to work in the building industry, because the system decreases the workload.

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6. What are the social benefits of this entry (eg working conditions, consumer safety, community relations)? The social benefits of the BubbleDeck floor system are as follows: • a substantial improvement of the working conditions at the building site as a result of the

application of big and light prefabricated floorelements and of less and lighter reinforcement bars and of casting up to 50 % less concrete

• consumer safety is increased because the floor system has a high bearing and impact capacity in comparison with traditional alternatives.

Placing BubbleDeck elements on the site 7. Are you satisfied that the entry is in compliance with the appropriate environmental, health & safety legislation? As far as known the BubbleDeck floor systems meets the requirements of the appropriate environmental, health and safety legislation. The rather new BubbleDeck floor system is not covered yet by the European Eco-label or the Dutch Milieukeur. Because of the short time that the system has been on the market, no activities have been deployed in this direction yet. BubbleDeck Netherlands B.V. is prepared to verify whether the floor system can be brought under such a label or environmental mark. 8. In the case of SMEs, what overall evidence is there that the entry will be commercially viable (eg market performance, technical viability)? The BubbleDeck organisation is specially incorporated to introduce and to promote the application of the BubbleDeck floor system. This is key-business of the organisation itself. The senior management of BubbleDeck has therefore a clear commitment to the development and marketing of the product and the service. The floor system enjoys, since its recent introduction, a fast growing interest for application as a self-supporting floor in buildings. The first major application is the Weenatower - the so-called Millennium Tower - in Rotterdam, with 34 stores (25,000 m²) and an overall heigth of more than 140 m. This tower is finished in June 2000. In the Netherlands now more than 40 projects are under execution, representing circa 150,000 m² of construction floors. In Belgium the first projects with the BubbleDeck floor system are expected to start in the second half of 2000 with a volume of approximately 50,000 m². In all these cases the BubbleDeck floor system has proved itself as financial concurrential in comparison with traditional alternatives.

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The BubbleDeck floor system has a very great economic potential. The above-mentioned technical and economic advantages make that this floor system is very much in demand with project developers, architects, structural engineers and building contractors. The replacement potential of the market segment for solid concrete floors and precast filigran slab floors with the BubbleDeck floor system is in the order of magnitude of 12.5 million m², this means a turnover of approximately NLG 1,250 million per year in the Netherlands. The profit margin is at a level of 5 to 6% of this turnover. The key-strategy of the BubbleDeck organization concentrates on reaching the final goal that every investor, architect, structural engineer and constractor considers the BubbleDeck floor system as the ultimate floor solution leading to measurable environmental, social and economic benefits within the framework of sustainable development. Sharing knowledge and expertise with building partners, students and other organisations is a mayor instrument to reach this goal.

Weena Tower Rotterdam 9. What prospects are there for wider application in Europe? The BubbleDeck floor system is world-wide applicable and has therefore a high replication potential. At this moment preparations are going on to incorporate a European BubbleDeck organization with national representatives in each country. Further on marketing developing contacts are going on in Asia, Africa and North- and South-America. The good environmental performance of the BubbleDeck floor system is an integral advantage which is used in the marketing for the product.

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10. On completion of your assessment please sign below: Signature (National Organiser): Date:

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CATEGORY 2: PRODUCT AWARD FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT 1. Please provide the following: (a) A summary of the circumstances leading to the development of the new product or related service; The market of construction floors in the building industry consists mainly of massive concrete floors, prefabricated filigran slab floors and hollow core slab floors. This situtation has not changed for more than 20 years. In the Netherlands the market share of these floors is about 29 million m² a year. All these types of floors have their advantages but also their disadvantages. Since three years a new innovative floor system combines all advantages of the other floor systems, solving all problems caused by their disadvantages in the same time. Besides that the new floor system enhances the structural possiblities in combination with an improved cost-effectiveness. Further on the floor system gives a tremendous contribution to sustainable development. Because of this reasons the new floor systeem, the BubbleDeck floor system, can be qualified as an innovative sustainable floor system.

Deliverance of the BubbleDeck elements on the site (b) Details of the specific innovative elements that distinguish this product or service from its

predecessors or others already on the market; and The innovative aspect in comparison with similar floor systems consists of: • the use of hollow plastic spheres in the concrete floor, where the concrete can usually be missed

(from a constructive point of view), clamped in a factory-made reinforcement structure, that results in a saving of up to 50 % on material, in other words: a 50 % greater material efficiency is achieved

• the BubbleDeck floor spans at all sides and due to its lower weight at can give at a smaller thickness the same performance as similar traditional floor systems, such as a solid concrete floor, a so-called precast filigran slab floor or a hollow core slab floor

• the BubbleDeck floor is a flat slab floor, therefore without the beams and column heads which similar floor systems need

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• the BubbleDeck floor is manufactured in an industrial way and is supplied to the construction site in large modules which, compared with similar floor systems, can be assembled into a whole using far less energy

• the BubbleDeck floor can be realised as a monolithic floor, ready for immediate use, while similar floor systems need a extra floor layer of 60 to 80 mm to be applied on the construction floor

• still, the BubbleDeck floor is not a rigid construction system and, compared with similar floor systems, offers flexibility for various applications, so that the architect, the structural engineer and the building contractor can use this floor system without any problem

• the BubbleDeck floor results in a substantial reduction of the building time, so that the building activities cause less environmental hindrance for the surrounding area.

Placing BubbleDeck elements

c) Evidence that the product or service performs functionally at least as well as a comparable alternative, and meets relevant safety standards. The BubbleDeck floor system is for its structural behaviour comparable with a solid concrete floor with a bearing capacity in all directions. Such floors are made since the beginning of the application of the material concrete in the beginning of the last age. Based on a lot of experience and research such floors are designed according the common Technical Standards. The BubbleDeck floor can thus be designed according these standards. However the BubbleDeck floor has hollow plastic spheres that gives the floor 35 % less weight. Some aspects of the structural behaviour are influenced by this phenomene. These aspects are shearforce- and punchcapacity. In order of BubbleDeck Netherlands B.V. these aspects are investigated by the Centre for Civil Engineering Research and Codes (CUR) in the Netherlands. This international famous institute executed applied research together with the Technical University of Eindhoven. The results of this research are available since the end of 1999 and are translated in designvalues, which will be published in a special standard (CUR-Recommendation) for the design of BubbleDeck floors in the second half of 2000. This ensures that BubbleDeck floors designed according to this standard perform functionally at least as well as a comparable alternative, and meet relevant safety standards.

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2. Please provide clear, detailed and quantified evidence of the environmental benefits of the product

or service, over and above a comparable alternative, measured over the complete life-cycle. These should be stated in terms of:

• energy and material inputs

The energy consumption during the production, during the use and also during the recycling of the raw materials is comparable by nature to the energy consumption of similar floor systems. The greatest part of the energy consumption concerns the production of the raw materials cement, sand, gravel, reinforcement steel and the production of concrete mortar and of the prefabricated BubbleDeck elements. These productions take place in existing cement factories and concrete products factories which play a pioneer's role in the reduction of the energy consumption. From the viewpoint of energy saving, however, the most important aspect is that the substantial savings of up to 50 % if the BubbleDeck floor system is used instead of comparable floor systems, result in a quantitative sense in an almost proportional saving on energy consumption. The conclusion is therefore justified that the BubbleDeck floor system yields an energy saving in the order of magnitude of 40 to 50 % in comparison with similar floor systems. The following raw materials are required for realising a BubbleDeck floor: • Sand, gravel, cement, water, reinforcement steel, plastic In order to allow a comparison, the required quantities are given in the following table for a solid concrete floor with a thickness of 280 mm versus a BubbleDeck floor of 230 mm which, due to its lower weight, can give the same performance at identical floor load and span. The percentages mentioned indicate which level of saving is achieved with the BubbleDeck floor system.

Hoisting BubbleDeck elements on the site

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Comparison of required quantities of raw materials and saving achieved by using the BubbleDeck floor system versus a solid concrete floor Solid concrete floor BubbleDeck floor (thickness 280 mm) (thickness 230 mm) sand 202 kg/m² (100 %) 107 kg/m² ( 53 %) gravel 336 kg/m² (100 %) 179 kg/m² ( 53 %) cement 90 kg/m² (100 %) 48 kg/m² ( 53 %) water 45 kg/m² (100 %) 24 kg/m² ( 53 %) reinforcement steel 26 kg/m² (100 %) 21 kg/m² ( 80 %) plastic ---- ( 0 %) 5 kg/m² ( 100 %) The savings on raw materials that can be achieved are substantial, both percentage-wise and in an absolute sense. The market volume of construction floors in the Netherlands is circa 29 million m² on an annual basis, of which about 12.5 million m² consists of solid floors, including precast filigran slab floors. From a constructive point of view, the BubbleDeck floor system can completely replace the entire volume of this application. This means that in an absolute sense large-scale savings are achieved on raw materials. Absolute saving on raw materials in tons per year in the event of replacement of solid concrete floors and precast filigran floors with the BubbleDeck floor system in the Netherlands quantitative saving corresponds with a saving in tons per year of • sand 1,187,500 4,000 shiploads of sand and • gravel 1,962,500 gravel • cement 525,000 12,000 truckloads of cement • water 262,500 • reinforcement steel 62,500 But these savings are not all, for BubbleDeck floors also replace a substantial percentage of the hollow core slab floors which, in the Netherlands, are used in a volume of approximately 9.3 million m² on an annual basis. The above mentioned figures can be extrapolated in a equal way to a European and even worldwide scale. The absolute effect of the application of the BubbleDeck floor system on this scale leads to tremendous positive effects in the framework of sustainable development. The listed environmental advantages of the BubbleDeck floor system imply that the environmental aspect is integrated into the entire process. This can be summarised as follows: • up to 50 % less raw materials required • proportionally less transport for the supply of these raw materials • proportional saving on energy required for extracting and manufacturing these raw materials • proportional saving on energy required for manufacturing the prefabricated system in the concrete

products factory • proportionally less transport due to the use of light and large elements • up to 50 % less consumption of concrete – and therefore sand, gravel and cement – at the

construction site • proportionally less crane capacity required, therefore less construction and noise hindrance • proportionally less energy required for processing the concrete at the construction site

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• proportionally fewer construction parts required, such as beams, columns and foundations, to which the above-mentioned advantages apply as well

• proportionally less energy required for demolishing concrete floors • proportionally less concrete granulate is produced which can be completely recycled for new

concrete applications • proportionally less transport required for evacuating this concrete granulate.

• waste generation

The BubbleDeck floor system can be recycled completely with the techniques available on the market and currently in use, when the final stage of its use has been reached. The concrete used can be re-used for high quality applications in the form of concrete granulate, the reinforcement steel can be re-melted into new steel and the plastic spheres can be recovered in their existing form and can be re-used in new BubbleDeck floors or can be recycled into new plastic. We wish to point out that the spheres currently used for the BubbleDeck floor system are already made of recycled plastic. Physical and chemical nature of the raw materials to be recovered: • concrete granulate : stone-like material consisting of sand, gravel and cement • reinforcement steel : steel alloy • plastic spheres : high density polyethylene (recycled) All materials can be recycled for 100 %.

BubbleDeck elements placed on the site

• emissions to air, water and land The emissions in the production chain of a BubbleDeck floor are: • emission of exhaust gases from the cement kiln • emission of exhaust gases from the blast furnace during production of steel • emission of noise during extraction of sand and gravel • emission of noise during the manufacture of BubbleDeck elements in the concrete products

factory • emission of noise during transport by road and by water • emission of noise during assembly of the BubbleDeck elements at the construction site All these emissions occur to a proportional extent with similar floor systems as mentioned above. The saving on emissions when the BubbleDeck floor system is used will result in proportional quantitative savings. This means that the emissions will be reduced by approximately 50 %.

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There are no harmful substances in the final stage of the life span. The noise hindrance has already been mentioned under the emissions and will also be quantitatively reduced by 50 %. With regard to the requirements for the environmental permit it can be said that these requirements relate especially to the actual production circumstances at the manufacture and extraction of the raw materials and the manufacture of the BubbleDeck floor system in the concrete products factory. Both the extraction and the composition of the raw materials and the manufacture of the BubbleDeck floor system take place in sophisticated factories that meet all environmental requirements. 3. Please provide evidence of the expected contribution to be made by the new product or service to

the organisation’s overall financial performance (eg through sales performance data or credible sales projections, with an estimate of the potential market size).

The floor system enjoys, since its recent introduction, a fast growing interest for application as a self-supporting floor in buildings. The first major application is the Weenatower - the so-called Millennium Tower - in Rotterdam, with 34 stores (25,000 m²) and an overall heigth of more than 140 m. This tower is finished in June 2000. In the Netherlands now more than 40 projects are under execution, representing circa 150,000 m² of construction floors. In Belgium the first projects with the BubbleDeck floor system are expected to start in the second half of 2000 with a volume of approximately 50,000 m². In all these cases the BubbleDeck floor system has proved itself as financial concurrential in comparison with traditional alternatives. The BubbleDeck floor system has a very great economic potential. The above-mentioned technical and economic advantages make that this floor system is very much in demand with project developers, architects, structural engineers and building contractors. The replacement potential of the market segment for solid concrete floors and precast filigran slab floors with the BubbleDeck floor system is in the order of magnitude of 12.5 million m², this means a turnover of approximately NLG 1,250 million per year in the Netherlands. The profit margin is at a level of 5 to 6% of this turnover. 4. What commitment exists, within your organisation, to the further development and/or marketing of

the new product or service? The BubbleDeck organisation is specially incorporated to introduce and to promote the application of the BubbleDeck floor system. This is key-business of the organisation itself. The senior management of BubbleDeck has therefore a clear commitment to the development and marketing of the product and the service. The key-strategy of the BubbleDeck organization concentrates on reaching the final goal that every investor, architect, structural engineer and constractor considers the BubbleDeck floor system as the ultimate floor solution leading to measurable environmental, social and economic benefits within the framework of sustainable development. Sharing knowledge and expertise with building partners, students and other organisations is a mayor instrument to reach this goal. The good environmental performance of the BubbleDeck floor system is an integral advantage which is used in the marketing for the product. The direct environmental advantages are pointed out in verbal contacts with customers, on the advice for the application and in the product information. The advantages are also highlighted within the framework of sustainable building. Through free publicity in the form of articles in magazines and newspapers, the floor system and its good environmental performance favourable are brought to the attention of the government agencies and the public. Further on lectures are given to groups of customers, during congresses and courses and to students of Technical Universities. Direct guidance is given to the study of approximately 40 students of several

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universities concerning the design and execution of building projects with the BubbleDeck floor system. At last the publicity of the partipation in the national and European Awards for the Environment aims to contribute to the ‘green’ image of the BubbleDeck floor system. 5. What consumer need(s) are met by the product or service? The following consumer needs are met by the application of the BubbleDeck floor system: • a decrease of building costs • an increase of consumer safety because the floor system has a high bearing and impact capacity

in comparison wiht traditional alternatives • a better environment because of the positive environmental effects of the BubbleDeck floor system. 6. What wider social benefits can be expected to arise from the production and consumption of the product or service (eg improved quality of life; security of employment; local economic development; consumer safety)? The social benefits of the BubbleDeck floor system are as follows: • a substantial improvement of the working conditions at the building site as a result of the

application of big and light prefabricated floorelements and of less and lighter reinforcement bars and of casting up to 50 % less concrete.

7. What potential is there for the innovative aspects of this product or service to be replicated elsewhere? The BubbleDeck floor system is world-wide applicable and has therefore a high replication potential. At this moment preparations are going on to incorporate a European BubbleDeck organization with national representatives in each country. Further on marketing developing contacts are going on in Asia, Africa and North- and South-America. The good environmental performance of the BubbleDeck floor system is an integral advantage which is used in the marketing for the product. And at last: the production techniques are applicable all over the world.

Office Tower Amsterdam: one of the projects under construction