IASS2015 Annual International Symposium
on Future Visions

Introduction

The International Association for Shell and Spatial Structures (IASS) and the Royal Netherlands Society for Engineers (KIVI) are co-organising the yearly IASS symposium. The symposium will take place from 17 to 20 August 2015 in Amsterdam the Netherlands.

Next to the many historic buildings in Amsterdam that can be visited, in 2015 the city of Amsterdam have recently completed a number of new buildings and projects, such as the Stedelijk Museum, the Rijksmuseum, Van Gogh museum, The Hermitage, Maritime museum and Eye Museum. Other recently realised projects in the Netherlands are the railway station in Arnhem and in Rotterdam.

These companies and institutes are generously supporting the conference:

Theme: Future Visions

We need Future visions! Humanity and our planet are in distress. We are facing a multitude of crises: financial, ecological, economical, waste, pollution, food, water, and depletion of resources. Many of these crises relate in some way to the built environment, the space people live in, as well as the industry that designs, builds, maintains and operates this space. In most countries the construction industry and related industries have a major involvement and significant impact on these factors. Therefore, we feel that it is our social and moral responsibility to address the future of space:

• How are we going to use this space manner that will sustain humanity in the future?
• How will we design this space and what will these designs look like?
• What technology can help us to improve our space and what technology will need to be developed?

On the other hand, the industries involved in the designing, building and operating the built environment hold the key in their hand for progress, development, an increase in quality of life.

It is clear that we need to act and innovate.

The challenge
The challenge that the conference organisers set for the presenters and attendees is to discuss how we can use the combination of our knowledge, novel ideas and technology to address the challenges and opportunities described above.

The conference will be open to any area in the built environment, on any scale and throughout the entire life cycle.

Special attention will be given to the design of and the technology related to the design, engineering, construction, operation and maintenance of Shell and Spatial Structuces, and other novel concepts, as a solution to address the challenges and opportunities mentioned above.

Proposals for radical new ideas are encouraged, but admittance to presentation will be judged (by the scientific committee) on the quality of the idea and the viability of the technological solution.

Digital Technology and BIM track

The symposium will host special sessions that will present the latest visions and technology in the field of Digital Technology and BIM.
It is undeniable that digital technology has a large impact on our society and built environment. Who could have guessed the rise of the internet, the cloud and a mobile in every pocket? But where do we go from here? What will the future look like now we have all this technology? How can we apply the technology in a meaningful way to enhance our lives, the way we live, our built environment and our society? Do we need more technology? And if so, what do we need?
The IASS2015 Future Visions will explore the latest thinking and developments on these questions and you can join us!
Surrounding the main conference programme special events and activities will be organised that are related to the field of digital innovation and BIM, such as workshops to handson learn and experiment with the latest technology and the trade fair to get in touch with the people behind these products and innovations.

The conference is co-sponsored by

Symposium Venue

The symposium will take place on the waterfront of the IJ river, which runs through Amsterdam, at “Het Muziekgebouw” located within walking distance of major hotels and the historical-city of Amsterdam. The historical city of Amsterdam was founded around the year 1000 and is approved on the Unesco list of world heritage because of the famous canals, city planning and historical buildings. There are many hotels, restaurants, bars, shops and museums.

Sail Amsterdam 2015

On the last two days of the 2015 IASS symposium the 5-yearly SAIL Amsterdam event will start. Sail Amsterdam is the biggest event in the Netherlands, from our conference location we will have an excellent view on the waterfront and the “Sail-in” with about 30 sailing tall ships and hundreds of smaller vessels. It is possible to visit the tall ships. More information on SAIL can be found on www.sail.nl

Probably the historic city of Amsterdam, the museums, Sail Amsterdam and other interesting things to be seen in the rest of the Netherlands might be an excellent reason to stay some more days after the symposium.

SAIL2015 will be bigger than ever! Read more in this article

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The following organisations are supporting us: