Integral Design for starting a cultural change in Dutch building design practice

Since 2001 an `integral approach' to building design has been propagated within Dutch building design practice, through continuously developing `learning by doing' workshops. The organization of workshops started during `Integral Design' project in 2000 that was conducted by the Dutch Society for Building Services (TVVL), the Royal Institute of Dutch Architects (BNA) and Delft University of Technology (TUD). The main focus of the project, which ended in 2003, was to raise the awareness of different disciplines about each others positions and problems in relation to building design, and to give an overview of issues influencing design integration and possible solution directions. The used workshops create a setting where the knowledge can be generated and regenerated in relationship to the knowledge development-triangle, in a realistic setting; the Reflexive Practice. In this paper we will explain the results of workshops, give an overview of participants' assessments (more than 180 professionals took part in TVVL-BNA-TUD workshops) and reflect on preliminary results / conclusions.