Saskia is an architect. Not the type to be inspired solely by beautiful facades, unusual materials or the latest design trends. She wants to design buildings that make sense. Sustainable, future-proof and feasible. She is constantly looking for ways to make better choices, to collaborate smarter and to realize more impact. Designing is thus increasingly a data-driven building process.
The world in which Saskia works is changing rapidly. Requirements around sustainability are becoming stricter. Clients expect more substantiation. Collaboration with consultants, contractors and installers is becoming increasingly complex. At the same time, there is growing pressure to design faster, work more efficiently and make risks transparent at an early stage.
Looking beyond the drawing board
She wants to know how digital technology can help her make better design decisions. How she gains insight into energy performance, environmental impact and costs as early as the first sketch stage. How data, models and smart software do not limit her, but actually give her more room to design. Precisely because Saskia does not believe in standardization leading to uniformity. She looks for ways in which digitalization can actually enhance design quality.
No buzzwords
Parametric design, BIM, digital collaboration and real-time analytics are not technical buzzwords for her. They are tools for comparing scenarios faster, making better trade-offs and including clients more convincingly in choices.
Because the earlier sustainability, feasibility and costs become clear, the stronger the final design will be.
The architect as connector
Increasingly, Saskia finds herself at the intersection of design, engineering and execution. She finds that her added value lies not only in creativity, but also in connecting disciplines.
This requires reliable data, good information exchange and clear processes. Not because technology is a goal in itself, but because cooperation improves when everyone works from the same information.
The architect of tomorrow not only designs buildings. They direct processes, connect parties and ensure that ambitions can become reality. Saskia is well aware of this and wants to be a leader in this field.
DigiBouw connects to that development
Here Saskia discovers how other frontrunners deal with digitalization, sustainability and chain cooperation. She sees how design decisions are becoming more measurable in terms of energy, environment and costs. She learns how regulations and quality assurance can be smartly integrated into the design and construction process. And she meets professionals who feel the same challenge: realizing better buildings in an increasingly complex world.
DigiBouw is not a traditional architecture fair. It is not primarily about materials or aesthetics. It is about the future of design, collaboration and building.
For architects like Saskia, curious, progressive and driven to make an impact, that is exactly where the greatest opportunities lie.
On the Main Stage at DigiBouw: “Digitalization is the salvation of architects!”
Will architects become obsolete due to digitization, data, and AI? In this session, Surya Steijlen (LEVS), Silvian van Tuyl (KuiperCompagnons), and Duco Uytenhaak (Uytenhaak & Partners, subject to confirmation) will demonstrate why the exact opposite is true. In an open discussion, they explore how digitization does not reduce the need for architects, but rather strengthens their role. As more and more routine tasks are automated, the focus shifts to where architects make a difference: reconciling complex interests, creating spatial quality, and designing meaningful living environments. Digitization offers new tools, but demands more than ever vision, creativity, and design ability.
On November 25 and 26, the future will come together during DigiBouw in Jaarbeurs Utrecht. Not to show what will one day be possible, but to discover what is already possible today.
Registering now to visit DigiBouw 2026 is not yet possible, but sign up for the updates and in early July the first 50 update registrants will receive an invitation with a summer discount of no less than 50%!
