6 March 2024

Green heritage, sustainable future

A social state of mind is at the heart of De Hoorn family. With their eye towards the future, De Hoorn strives to be a sustainable organisation so that future generations can also enjoy this unique location. 

Sustainable techniques

In addition to De Hoorn's rich history, the building is a distinctly sustainable project. Firstly, De Hoorn's roof is full of solar panels. Green energy thus flows throughout the building. Secondly, the building contains high-end technology that controls the heating, ventilation and lighting. From ventilation based on natural cooling to lighting that works through presence detectors. Nothing is missing in De Hoorn. Is there no one in the room? Then all the lights go off automatically and the heating switches to pre-comfort mode. 

De Hoorn is also equipped with cisterns that store rainwater. That water is then recovered in all the building's toilets. Did you know that a million litres of rainwater was flushed down the toilet last year? 

Close by and local, because sometimes you don’t have to look far...

De Hoorn is easily accessible by public transport. Leuven station is within walking distance, or you can also take the bus. Finally, we work with local products and suppliers as much as possible. For example, our burgers come from Leuven's quality butcher Rondou and we get our chocolates from an artisanal Leuven-based chocolatier Bittersweet. These local traders make their products with love and craftsmanship, because the quality of the products obviously takes precedence! If there are any delicacies left over from an event, the more than 500 people working in De Hoorn get the opportunity to enjoy these tidbits because we don't want to waste anything. 

And it goes on!

And so, at De Hoorn, we not only strive for a sustainable environment, but also let the building itself 'shine' as the most eco-friendly member of the family. But the sustainability story does not end here! There is still room for improvement and we have set concrete targets to further develop our sustainable efforts. Among other things, we are in the process of replacing the old, traditional lighting to new, LED lighting. In addition, we will also make life a lot easier for our bicycle users by installing a new bicycle stairway. So we continue to strive for a future where sustainability is not just a goal, but a fundamental part of our daily functioning.