The former RDM shipyard in Rotterdam, Europe’s largest port, is being redeveloped into a campus for educational institutions, innovative companies and research institutions and their partners from the business community and government. Besides serving as an innovative educational and work complex, RDM Campus and the RDM Innovation Dock also seek to restore links between the village of Heijplaat and the centre of Rotterdam.
- 30 July 2010
We already have six companies present who are testing and prototyping new product and process ideas.
RDM, originally an acronym for Rotterdamsche Droogdok Maatschappij (Rotterdam Dry Dock Company), now stands for: Research, Design & Manufacturing. On the RDM campus, educational institutions and companies collaborate to achieve sustainable and innovative solutions in the sustainable construction, mobility and energy markets.
Multiplier effect
The project seeks to turn a brownfield area into an attractive place where traditional and modern new methods of work and education can flourish and stimulate innovation. This will have a multiplier effect, bringing new prosperity to the village of Heijplaat and a new connection to the city of Rotterdam. The layout and organisation of the RDM Innovation Dock is similar to that of an exhibition hall, giving young entrepreneurs plenty of space to start up and build their activities.
Three-way partnership
The project seeks to bring an economic and cultural revival to Heijplaat, which was deeply affected when RDM ceased shipbuilding activities in the 1950s.
The project is based on a three-way partnership between HBR, the Port of Rotterdam Authority responsible for management the Rotterdam Harbour; Albeda College, a centre of intermediate vocational education; and Rotterdam University, the leading knowledge institute for higher professional education.
After HBR renovated and converted the old machinery hall into the RDM Innovation Dock, Albeda College and Rotterdam University ordered the conversion of the remaining space for educational purposes. In the third phase, HBR prepared 12 000 square metres of space for use by businesses, creating more than 30 individual lots.
Sustainability is a key part of the project, which is closely related to the Rotterdam Climate Initiative. Whenever possible, the educational institutions and companies are encouraged to use and develop solar, wind and hydroelectric power. Companies in the Innovation Dock are developing prototypes of houses built on water, hydrogen-powered go-karts and hybrid buses and other vehicles.