Have you ever wondered how old tugboats can play a role in our energy transition? In the heart of Maassluis, Loods M functions as a meeting place where maritime past and sustainable future come together, from historic barges to innovative sea salt battery tests.
For the semester course Sustainability Challenge, Isa Huipen, student of Industrial Ecology (a programme by Leiden University and TU Delft), investigated which integrated energy system best suits the future building of Loods M and its historic tugboats.
To understand what Loods M stands for, we first have to go back in the history of Maassluis. Due to its unique and convenient location, the city has a rich maritime tradition. You can still see this today in the many foundations around historic towing and tow barges, in the two museums and in various maritime companies.
Loods M acts as a central place in the port where all these parties come together: not only to preserve the maritime heritage, but also to work together on a sustainable future for the sector. This is done, among other things, through collaborations with educational institutions and innovative start-ups, such as Dr. Ten, who is testing a sea salt battery there, for example. In this way, Loods M is both a place for experimentation and education and a meeting place for the local community.
What exactly did you research?
For the semester course Sustainability Challenge, I worked with five enthusiastic fellow students on a practical case, in collaboration with an external partner. In our case, that was Loods M, and more specifically the Erfgoedkwartiermakers organization. They asked us to investigate which sustainable energy system would be suitable for the future building of Loods M.
Our goal was to map out the possibilities for both sustainable generation and storage of electricity, with extra attention to the existing historical heritage. An interesting question was, for example, whether, and how, the historic tugboats could become part of the energy system, so that their position within the port is strengthened.
We started our research with an analysis of the expected energy consumption and the possible sustainable generation in and around Loods M. Gradually, however, we found out that social acceptance was also an important factor. That is why we have given this aspect a central place in our research. In the end, it turned out to be a broad question, with many different parties involved.
