The evaluation process of tender bids in area development by Ontwikkelingsmaatschappij het Nieuwe Westland (ONW) is addressed, which currently uses non-quantified selection criteria to find developers, one of them being 'Vision of Sustainability'. With sustainability gaining importance, this research aims to enhance the tender process by quantifying sustainability criteria and incorporating them into a preference-based decision-making model. The research question guiding this thesis is: ‘How can sub-criteria of sustainability in area development be quantified and implemented into a preference-based decision-making model?’ The quantification of sustainability sub-criteria was performed using the DCBA method, which defines forty sustainability characteristics in area development. Each characteristic is assessed across four scenarios (D, C, B, and A), ranging from least to most sustainable. The sustainability scenarios were quantified based on costs and revenue across different variables (house types). For this thesis, a selection of these characteristics was elaborated as a prototype. The Preferendus Tool, combining Preference Function Modelling and Tetra software, was used to create a model that optimises housing differentiation and ranks tender bids based on stakeholder preferences. User experiments revealed that while the model's complexity requires technical support, it holds value primarily as an assessment tool, to rank different developer bids, rather than a design tool. The model's potential was hindered by variability in optimisation results, suggesting the need for further mathematical refinement. Incorporating sustainability into an optimisation model shows promise for enhancing the evaluation of sustainability in area development tenders. Future recommendations include incorporating updated sustainability criteria, expanding user experiments with actual stakeholders, and iteratively improving the model. In conclusion, the thesis demonstrates how sustainability sub-criteria can be quantified and integrated into a preference-based decision-making model, providing a structured approach to optimise and evaluate sustainability in area development. The findings support the development of a model that can potentially improve the current tender evaluation process by offering a quantifiable assessment of sustainability.

In the field of urban development few challenges are as tough as the housing problem. The cause for this is the rapid expansion of urban populations combined with slow construction processes. The Open Design Systems (Odesys) methodology is a preference-based design methodology for creating and evaluating designs. For this it uses a-priori method of optimization, where the preferences of stakeholders for each project objective are determined in the beginning of the process. Designs are thereafter created based on these preferences. Central to the success of preference-based design is the attitude of stakeholders towards using the methodology, which in other words is acceptance for this methodology. How can acceptance be evaluated? To do this the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) was used. The system design features in the TAM were categorized in the “Use”, “Functionality” and the “Presentation”. Modifications to the Odesys methodology were made in these categories to see the effect on the stakeholder acceptability using the TAM. This research attempted to raise the acceptability for the Odesys methodology with the use of 2 case studies. The conclusion was that for the “Use” category the acceptability was dependent on the project design phase and the involvement of stakeholders. For the “Functionality”, the result reliability and the running time were important factors. The “Presentation” category consisted of the interface and the distinction between group and individual sessions. Modifications to these were developed and tested. This resulted in an increased perceived usefulness and a perceived ease-of-use , which according to the TAM results in an increased acceptance.