Casais Group held the “Connect to Build \u2013 Affordable Housing and Industrialisation: Scaling Purposeful Solutions conference at the Bel\u00e9m Cultural Centre in Lisbon. The event brought together various players in the sector to debate the housing challenges Portugal faces and the role of industrialisation in their response to meeting the need for housing.<\/p>\n
One of the highlights of the conference was the signing of the \u201cWell Live\u201d<\/a> protocol between the Casais Group<\/strong> and IKEA Portugal<\/strong>, underscoring both organisations’ commitment to developing joint solutions that promote affordable and sustainable housing through innovation and environmentally responsible practices in the sector.<\/p>\n The event featured two round table discussions that explored topics such as the urgent need for housing, modular construction, off-site construction, and digitalisation, with a focus on the sustainability, predictability, and quality<\/strong> of housing solutions. Participants included Patr\u00edcia Viana, partner at Abreu Advogados<\/a> law firm, Cl\u00e1udia Domingues, Communications Manager at IKEA Portugal<\/a>, \u00c1lvaro Santos, founder and managing partner at Agenda Urbana<\/a>, regional and urban planners, and Miguel Saraiva, CEO at Saraiva + Associados<\/a>, an architectural firm<\/strong>.<\/p>\n The conference was also attended by Gon\u00e7alo Regalado, Chairman of the Executive Committee of Banco Portugu\u00eas do Fomento<\/a><\/strong>, who highlighted the need for \u201cPortuguese companies for Portuguese people with the capacity to invest in Portugal and abroad,\u201d and by the Secretary of State for Housing<\/a>, Patr\u00edcia Machado Santos<\/strong>, who in her closing speech said that it was importance to \u201cbe in direct contact with those on the ground, who are best acquainted with the issues involved, to which end we have been working hard in partnership with the entire sector,\u201d thus reinforcing the country’s institutional commitment to affordable housing and innovation in the sector.<\/p>\n Ant\u00f3nio Carlos Rodrigues, CEO of the Casais Group<\/strong>, said that \u201caffordable housing<\/a> is one of the greatest challenges of our time and requires a coordinated response between the various agents involved. We believe that the industrialisation of the construction sector is a decisive step toward ensuring greater predictability, efficiency, and sustainability, while making quality solutions available to more people. With this type of initiative, we seek to promote constructive debate and generate collaborative projects that contribute to accelerating the transformation of the sector.<\/em><\/p>\n