YEAR:
2023-2024
CLIENT:
Heijmans
SERVICES PROVIDED:
Build
budget:
55 million (including 15 years of maintaining time)
size:
13.500m2
STATUS:
In the construction stage
Project info:
This project involves the renovation and expansion of a municipal monument into a new national government office in the Arnhem station area. The building, a former post office, will accommodate the Tax Administration, the Central Government Real Estate Agency, and the Education Executive Agency (DUO). This initiative stands out for its commitment to sustainability, circularity, and enhancing connectivity with the public space, thereby fostering an attractive and healthy living environment. The project, valued at over €55 million, includes maintenance for 15 years following its completion, with construction expected to commence in March 2024 and completion aimed for the end of 2025. During the detailed design phase (DO), our team was responsible for developing and coordinating the MEP models for the project.
Client brief info:
From starting as a one-man road builder in the 1920s, Heijmans has grown into a big company with over 4,000 people. They work on building and fixing homes, offices, and roads, focusing on making things better, coming up with new ideas, and putting everything together to help their customers. They’ve worked on projects for people buying homes, businesses, and the government, all aiming to shape how tomorrow’s places will look.
The Challenge:
The project presents several challenges, including the need for high sustainability standards, limited space above the ceiling for expansion, and a short duration for the detailed design phase we were a part of. These challenges require a strategic and practical approach to ensure the project meets Heijmans’ quality standards and timelines.
The Approach:
To overcome these challenges, the approach amplifies:
- Working Together: With planning this short, collaboration is key. Making sure the communication between all designing disciplines is optimal and informing interdisciplinary on time. Embracing a mindset focused on cooperation and shared goals was valuable.
- The Right Focus: Making sure that the focus is on what is needed in this design stage was important. Too many details could stain and delay the process, too few details and future errors could be missed. Making sure to find the sweet spot here, was the key.
- Integration with Heijmans’ Standards: Making sure that the model is according to Heijmans’ standards so that they can continue with the model in the remaining phases of the engineering and execution process, without any knowledge loss, reworks, or a model that is not according to their standard or work process.
The Outcome:
While the outcome of the complete building remains to be seen, the goal was to achieve a Rijksvastgoedbedrijf (RVB) approved Design Optimization phase that is ready to transition smoothly into the Technical Design and Implementation Phases. The project should deliver a model and phase handover that provides a good base for Heijmans to continue with the technical design and execution phase, nurturing a sustainable, renovated government office space that makes the Arnhem station area more appealing.
