Ideas, encounters
and perspectives.

In January 2015, Willem van Willigen, general manager of Fondamental SARL and founder of Newood technology, visited the University of California San Diego and met with Joel P. Conte, Professor of Structural Engineering. The visit to the large shake table facility provided an opportunity to present Newood’s structural principles and discuss their potential.

In his letter dated March 3, 2015, following the presentation and their discussions, the professor expresses interest in the proposed concepts. He identifies the strength-to-weight ratio, the low inertia of shell buildings and the distribution of forces through bonded assembly. He also highlights:

« the importance of your innovation for a last century without striking evolutions in the area of residential construction. »

The professor considers that the technology potentially has a promising future in California and other seismic regions of the world. This encouraging assessment follows the documents presented and their discussions: no Newood seismic test was carried out as part of this visit. The original letter, its French translation and photographs of the meeting are shown below.