David Adjaye, Peris +Toral, Stephen Bates and Mohammed Adib, top speakers at Construmat

The renowned British-Ghanaian architect David Adjaye, the Catalan duo Marta Peris and José Toral of Peris+Toral Arquitectes, British architect Stephen Bates, and Dubai-based Mohammed Adib will be the key speakers at the 2025 Sustainable Building Congress of Construmat. This international forum will take place from May 20 to 22 at the Gran Via venue, addressing key topics such as social housing, healthy buildings, and the use of artificial intelligence, based on global experiences.

Born in Tanzania to Ghanaian diplomats and currently based in London, Sir David Adjaye is renowned for his work on the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington. A defender of committed, humane, and social architecture, Adjaye’s creative process emphasizes learning from past generations. His projects include the Sugar Hill affordable housing in New York, the Nobel Peace Centre in Oslo, and the Moscow School of Management Skolkovo in Russia. His latest endeavor involves transforming Ghana’s healthcare sector by building 101 new prefabricated, energy-efficient hospitals.

Marta Peris and José Toral, Catalan architects, focus on addressing the challenges of the housing crisis and climate emergency. Their Modulus Matrix project, a six-story building with a modular wooden structure, won the 2024 International Prize from the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) and the 2024 Construmat Prize for sustainability. The use of wood helps reduce CO₂ emissions, while the modular design shortens construction times, presenting a model for faster home-building solutions.

References in Sustainability and AI

The third main speaker, Stephen Bates, is the co-founder of Sergison Bates Architects, a UK-based firm. Bates is known for his focus on sustainability, particularly in the construction of social housing and revitalization of public buildings to regenerate degraded areas. Notable works include transforming the former Citroën factory in Brussels into a cultural center, and the renovation of a former workshop into residential housing around a central courtyard in Lavender Hill, London, which won the 2023 RIBA National Award.

Finally, Mohammed Adib, Chief Design Officer at Dewan Architects + Engineers in Dubai since 2017, has over 30 years of experience working on projects across Europe, Asia, and Africa. He founded Intercon, a commercial interior design firm based in Barcelona and Dubai, and has worked on high-profile projects such as The Avenue Hotel and Shaza Mecca Hotel. Adib has been instrumental in Dewan’s expansion into Southeast Asia and in establishing its Metaverse Architecture Department (MAD), where AI is leveraged to enhance design efficiency, creativity, and functionality.

Three Core Themes
In its 2025 edition, Construmat’s Sustainable Building Congress will structure its contents around three thematic axes: Social Housing to promote affordable, quality residential projects as a response to the existing housing deficit; Biohabitability and Health to publicise materials, projects and designs for healthy construction spaces for users; and Artificial Intelligence with the aim of promoting the use of AI technologies in architecture to optimise the design, construction and management of buildings.

Social housing
The opening day will focus on sustainable and industrialised construction approaches aimed at expanding the housing supply. The presentations will range from the use of wood and regenerative strategies in residential design, which will be given by Peris+Toral and Stephen Bates, to industrialised construction models, defended by representatives of the firms PMP and Culmia, the latter with the case of the Plan Vive in Madrid. Inspirational projects will also be presented, such as the building of 2 social housing units for older people and individuals with disabilities in the Azpilagaña neighbourhood of Pamplona; SFJ6, a project of 102 social housing units in Vallecas (Madrid), or the development of 205 social housing units for young rentals ‘Ntra Sra. De los Ángeles, 14’, also in the Spanish capital.

For its part, IMHAB will analyse the challenges of public housing in Barcelona, and the round table ‘Social Atlas of Housing’ will bring together experts from the CSCAE, CEAV and other entities to debate the barriers to access to housing. In addition, international cases will be discussed, such as the new programme of direct aid for access to housing launched in Morocco.

It is worth highlighting that Construmat will take advantage of the opening session of the Congress to present the decalogue of measures needed to solve the problem of the housing shortage, drawn up by the main sectoral associations of the building sector.

Health and Biohabitability
On the second day, presentations will focus on how architecture and construction can contribute to people’s wellbeing. Healthy building models, integration of systems and materials, design strategies for healthy spaces, biohabitability criteria and the role of digitalisation will be explored. Architect David Adjaye will talk about hospital architecture and pioneering projects such as La Termal, an industrialised positive energy building promoted by the EU, will be explained. The presentation of a study by CGATE titled ‘Housing, Mental Health and Loneliness’, which addresses the impact of the residential environment on emotional and intergenerational health, will also be highlighted.

Artificial Intelligence
The last day of the Congress will be dedicated to analysing the impact of artificial intelligence in the construction sector and its practical application in architecture, engineering and building projects. The presentations will range from real-world applications of automation and data analytics, as well as methodologies that integrate AI with circular economy principles to achieve sustainable and energy-efficient buildings such as SNUG. Tools applied to BIM, predictive design and construction management will be presented, as well as business experiences, such as the evolution of AI in the firm Alsina or the use of this technology by b720 Fermín Vázquez in the Polaris North Building. Two round tables organised by ITEC and CATEB with the participation of companies, startups, architects and organisations will complete this thematic block offering a critical and forward-looking perspective on the challenges, opportunities, and imperative of AI adoption in the built environment.

With over 60 expert speakers, the Sustainable Building Congress is curated by Jorge Arditti, architect and president of the Mexican chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA), and a leading voice in sustainable architecture on the global stage.

Barcelona, May 2025

Check out the program here

Images of the Congress (2024) here 

Photos of the top speakers 2025 here

PRESS REGISTRATION Construmat 2025 here 

Maria Dolors Herranz-Edu Pérez Moya
Tel. 93 233 25 41 – 21 66
premsa@firabarcelona.com