Demolition of W&N building

The W&N building will largely be demolished because it no longer meets the housing requirements for high-quality education and research. Part of the building will be retained and renovated, the AB wing. The process started in 2024, which included the dismantling of the cyclotron center, and is expected to be completed in 2028.

The demolition will be done as sustainably as possible and released materials will be reused wherever possible, preferably on the VU Campus. The demolition work will take place in phases, with the safety of employees, students, local residents and those directly involved always being paramount and inconvenience being minimized as much as possible.

Such a large-scale demolition and renovation project inevitably has an impact on the trees and other greenery in the immediate vicinity of the building. A necessary, additional consequence is that trees and plants around the building must be removed. Removal always takes place outside the breeding season and only occurs when it is really necessary from a construction planning perspective.

VU Amsterdam has conducted careful flora and fauna research to carefully consider which trees and plants can be replanted. The replanting is also part of VU Amsterdam's plans in greening the campus grounds. The remaining trees and plants will be compensated through the municipality's replanting fund. The wood suitable for reuse will be crafted by Stadshout into products such as insect hotels and benches.

Demolition work on old Cyclotron building east side W&N building

Over the past few months, work has been ongoing to demolish the foundation and bunkers of the old Cyclotron building on the east side of the W&N building. We are expected to continue removing the floor and the last parts of the bunker until the end of October 2025. After that, stored concrete rubble and steel will be removed and the site will be backfilled with soil.

Start of demolition work CDE building on west side W&N building

In October 2025, demolition work started on the west side of the W&N building, the CDE section. First, we will clear the roof and then cut the building into small sections. The demolition of the CDE section will last until mid-December.

More information and contact

The partial demolition and renovation of the W&N building are part of a long-term renewal of the VU Campus. More information can be found on our website: vu.nl/sloop. Questions about the work? If so, feel free to contact our environmental manager Mark Mul on 06 17 71 09 61.