Amsterdam takes steps towards integrated subsurface management with Movares and Future Insight
- Future Insight
- 3h
- 3 min read
In today's dynamic urban environment, where housing construction, energy transition, climate adaptation, and mobility converge, the subsurface is increasingly becoming a crucial bottleneck. Without adequate coordination, standardization, and collaboration, spatial friction arises, project implementation delays, and capital destruction. The City of Amsterdam is experiencing this as well, wanting to more effectively distribute the available underground space among supply chain partners such as Waternet, Liander, and Vattenfall, and to improve data sharing from the earliest stages of design through to construction.
To facilitate the transition to integrated subsurface management, the City of Amsterdam established the Subsurface Management Team (RTO). The ambition to develop the subsurface as a fully-fledged component of the city requires more than just technical solutions; it demands a shared digital language, cross-chain collaboration, and administrative assurance. A functioning data ecosystem, or data roundabout, is a crucial prerequisite and is part of the City of Amsterdam's overarching program plan. Future Insight emphasizes the importance of a solid foundation of data, collaborations, and processes, as this forms the indispensable basis for every successful project in a sustainable living environment.
Engineering firm Movares was commissioned to carry out this project. Movares and Future Insight jointly investigated the digital foundations of key players in the underground infrastructure: Waternet, Liander, Vattenfall, and MijnAanaansluiting. They also provided advice on realistic and achievable next steps in the form of a roadmap. This roadmap, with an initial program, serves as a starting point for creating common ground. It is essential to embark on this journey together based on a shared vision: a common starting point, sufficient support, and a shared goal.
We recently proudly presented the findings and recommendations of our research report, together with Movares and the City of Amsterdam, during a lunchtime lecture. Aydemir Çetin , senior digitalization consultant at Movares, and Marco Scheffers, advisor at the City of Amsterdam, played a crucial role in this project and share their insights.
Why did Movares choose to collaborate with Future Insight on this research?
Aydemir Çetin: “During this research phase, we collaborated intensively with Future Insight, seamlessly complementing our technical and subsurface knowledge with their expertise in digitization and data governance. This resulted in a shared vision and a roadmap that everyone recognizes.”
How do Movares and Future Insight complement each other, and why is this combination essential for the effectiveness of the first phase of this research?
Aydemir Çetin: “It is precisely this combination of expertise that has created a solid foundation for the next phases. The roadmap and the launch program enable practical steps to be taken, with concrete use cases that demonstrate that collaboration and standardization are not only necessary, but also effective and feasible.”
Are you satisfied with the outcome? What do you think are the key lessons, considerations, and next steps to move closer to a functioning data ecosystem?
Aydemir Çetin: "The collaboration with Future Insight was incredibly valuable for us. Their expertise in digitization and organizational consulting seamlessly aligned with our technical and substantive knowledge of the subsurface. Together, we developed an approach that not only works in Amsterdam's practice but also directly aligns with national initiatives like digiGO, the Administrative Agreement, and the Digital System for the Built Environment (DSGO). It's precisely this connection that ensures the results don't remain stuck in a pilot program, but can be sustainably scaled up and deliver maximum added value for the city and the sector."
Why is the focus on digital infrastructure and data quality crucial for the ambitions of the City of Amsterdam?
Marco Scheffers: “We all recognize the need for change in our society. The concerns and challenges are enormous, and fortunately, so are our dreams. To deal with this practically, we need knowledge to act appropriately. This knowledge about our physical environment is fueled by data and by giving it meaning. Building a livable city with a sustainable future without also building high-quality, sustainable data is ineffective and inefficient. We waste a lot of time and knowledge by allowing information to be lost. Transforming ideas into reality also means building a digital infrastructure. This research and roadmap help us piece together another piece of this large puzzle.”
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