The Green Village (TGV) is forging ahead, fast becoming a tangible reality on campus. On June 2 at a networking reception on the TGV site, with construction fully under way, around 250 attendees made up of scientists and researchers, government delegates, students and CEOs of firms large and small, witnessed the signing of the Green Deal.
Representatives of TU Delft, central government, the province of South Holland, Delfland water board, Delft municipality and market stakeholders Engie, Stedin and Alliander publicly signalled their commitment to the Green Village innovation platform.
In a previous Delta article, Hubert Linssen, TGV Building and Realisation manager, rightly predicted a storm of activity following months of quiet preparation. The event marks the start in earnest of the execution phase said Jaron Weishut, TGV managing director. For Tim van der Hagen, chairman of the TU Delft board of governors, TGV is a logical next step for the university to apply and showcase its knowledge and reinforce partnerships. Andy van den Dobbelsteen, professor of Climate Design and Sustainability, said TGV fills a gap somewhere in between a traditional lab and a pilot project. TGV will provide a safe zone for the study, building and testing in real life of innovative sustainable technological systems to accelerate their application in society. Speakers outlined five innovation areas that TGV will focus on to improve efficient use of water, transition to an efficient direct current energy system without the energy losses of alternating current, upgrade the built environment, implement smart grids to make interactive outdoor spaces and use hydrogen fuel cell cars as power plants. The Prêt-à-Loger house, the car port with solar cells, the hydrogen fuel cell car developed by TU Delft and Hyundai, a mini smart grid control centre with screens showing system performance and a demo version of energy generating paving tiles were available for viewing after the signing. “Foundations are ready for a residential living lab with studio units for 20 students and TGV offices on the ground floor,” said Linssen. “There will also be a recyclable glass masonry bridge connecting TGV to Mekelpark developed by the architecture faculty.”
To wrap up, the event moved to the TU Delft Library for final drinks and more doses of innovation at the Research Exhibition, where twenty research projects discovered by the DIG-it! programme were on display.
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