Brussels, Belgium, 6 March 2008 - Living Steel and architectenbureau cepezed have announced the signing of a design agreement for the construction of a demonstration building in Warsaw, Poland. cepezed, an architectural practice based in the Netherlands, were one of two winners of Living Steel's 1st International Architecture Competition for Sustainable Housing. The second winning design is to be constructed in Calcutta, India.

Cepezed's design, called Kick Start, uses a modular steel construction system that the company has developed. The system enables most work to be carried out off-site with the prefabricated apartment modules transported to the site on trucks. As the steel modules are quite light, only small cranes are needed to lift them into place. The use of steel and the modular system means construction time will be reduced to just 65 days. Completion is scheduled for early February 2009.

The five-storey building will contain 20 apartments with a total living space of 1,125 m2. Each floor contains three apartments of 52 m2 and one of 69 m2. Underground parking is also provided for 20 cars. The building will be constructed on Popularna Steet, about eight kilometres from downtown Warsaw.

Cepezed will undertake the preliminary and final design for the project. The company will carry out the work in close cooperation with a number of local Polish consultants. Structural engineering work will be handled by Biuro Projektów Architektonicznych i (AiB), while fire engineering will be performed by the Instytut Techniki Budowlanej (ITB). Cepezed also will work with local architectural firm Baza Architekci. Cepezed has recently signed a contract with the developer of the demonstration project, local Polish firm TUP S.A.Editor's Notes

About Living Steel

Living Steel, a worldwide, collaborative programme designed to stimulate innovative and responsible housing design and construction was launched in February, 2005. The programme was developed to help address the unprecedented pressure on infrastructure, communities and the quality of people's lives stemming from growing urban populations.

Becker Industrial Coatings, McDonald Steel Building Products Ltd., Realm Intermediaries (P) Ltd. and Saint-Gobain Gypsum are Associate Members.

Supporting Members of the Living Steel include Associação Portuguesa de Construção Metálica e Mista, Asociación para la Construcción de Estructuras Metálicas, Asociación para la Promoción Técnica del Acero, Bouwen mit Staal, Canadian Institute of Steel Construction, Centro Brasileiro da Construção em Aço, European Convention for Constructional Steelwork, Finnish Constructional Steelwork Association, Fondazione Promozione Acciaio, HERA, Institute for Steel Development and Growth, Instituto Latinoamericano del Fierro y el Acero, International Zinc Association, Korea Iron & Steel Association, Korean Society of Steel Construction, Singapore Structural Steel Society, South African Institute of Steel Construction, Staalinfocentrum - Centre Information Acier, Stahl-Informations-Zentrum, Steel Construction Institute, Steel Framing Alliance and Turk Yapisal Celik Dernegi.

Visit www.livingsteel.org/members to learn more about our members.

About cepezed

Architectenbureau cepezed is a medium sized, award-winning spatial design specialist based in Delft, the Netherlands. Assignments address the challenges of town-planning, industry, interiors and particularly architecture.

Regular construction materials do not always suffice for cepezed's integral design methods. Therefore it also innovates. Over recent time cepezed has introduced new building materials to achieve the special effects clients desire. Visit http://www.cepezed.nl/ for more information.