2NdSKin: a business opportunity driven zero-energy apartment refurbishment approach in the Netherlands

The post-war apartments in the Netherlands account for 1/3 of the residential stock. To increase the renovation rate, the product-/service propositions have to change radically. This paper presents the 2ndSkin refurbishment concept – a business opportunity driven research and development projects – that results in zero energy use of dwellings, while minimising construction time and maximizing occupants’ acceptance. The project is developing a scalable approach, relying on prefabrication and industrialization, benefitting from economies of scale to drop cost. This is a shift from the traditional, project-based working culture of the construction industry. Furthermore, the paper proposes a business model for similar refurbishment approaches. The model aims at reversing the traditional decision-making process, to facilitate the zero-energy refurbishment introduction to the market.