Week of 21 March
1. Prestigious awards (Western Europe)
Last week, two prestigious prizes were awarded to projects carried out by BESIX and its partners.
- The A16 Rotterdam, a new 11-kilometre energy-neutral motorway, has won the Belgium Construction Award 2021 in the BIM Infrastructure category. The project includes a tunnel. Using 3D design and BIM models, our colleagues created a digital twin called TWIN16. By creating a link between this digital twin and the actual tunnel operational control software, they were able to carry out virtual tests and run all the system tests. This resulted in reduced failure costs and improved software quality. In addition to BESIX NL, BESIX Engineering also contributed significantly to this achievement with the parametric design of the tunnel and by using the BIM model as a single source of truth in the design process.
- The new HQ of BNP Paribas Fortis in Brussels was awarded first prize in the category "Best Office and Business Development" at the MIPIM Awards 2022 in Cannes, France. This global event recognises the most outstanding and accomplished projects in the real estate sector. Mark Beyst, General Manager of BESIX Belgium-Luxembourg: “[...] It is an example for Brussels, but also for all major European cities and beyond, of a building that combines magnificent architecture, great attention to sustainability and real comfort for users [...]”
Congratulations to all our colleagues from BESIX Engineering, BESIX Belgium-Luxembourg and BESIX NL who contributed to the realisation of these two projects.
2. A tunnel for Abidjan (Ivory Coast)
Construction has started in Abobo, Abidjan. BESIX is carrying out the civil works for the construction of a 560 metre long tunnel, including access ramps, which will accommodate three lanes of traffic in each direction. Carried out for PFO Africa, the project consists of passing National Road 1 under the Abobo roundabout, which will significantly improve traffic flow between the Ivorian economic capital and the east and north-east of the country. The tunnel is being built using the cut-and-cover method.
3. First concrete for the Scheldt tunnel (Belgium)
The Scheldt tunnel is one of the main components of the Oosterweel, a major project with a total value of 4.5 billion euros, which consists of closing off the Antwerp ring road. The tunnel, with a total length of 1800 metres, is being built by the temporary company COTU, of which BESIX is one of the partners. In mid-March, COTU started the construction of the diaphragm walls for the tunnel entrances with the pouring of the first concrete. A milestone! While the tunnel mouths are built on site using the cut-and-cover method, the tunnel sections will be built far from there, in Zeebrugge, and will then be transported via the North Sea and the Scheldt to Antwerp, where they will be immersed in their final location.
4. Tomorrow’s homes with “Circl” (Belgium)
The LivingLab Circular Bio-based Construction Industry (CBCI) is a project co-developed by the University of Leuven and the Vanhout Group (Vanhout, ComTIS Energy, ComTIS Installations, BuildUp). The aim of the project is to build sustainable housing that combines optimal use of raw materials, maximum circularity, high construction speed, and optimisation of space and energy consumption: on this basis, the partners have developed the 'Circl' project, which consists of assembling sustainable terraced houses in a very short time. Last week, Circl received the support of the Flemish Minister of Housing, Matthias Diependaele, who came to the Ghent Technology Campus to witness the realisation of these future homes. Vanhout is currently building several houses on its own land. The aim is to convince the market of the economic and environmental benefits of modular housing.
And then this... You've got a friend in BESIX Infra
A major fire in a company building is always a disaster. This is what happened last week to Hoogmartens, a regular partner of BESIX Infra in the Flemish infrastructure market. In order to keep the company running as smoothly as possible, BESIX Infra proactively offered to move its teams temporarily to its offices in Bilzen, which Hoogmartens readily accepted. Kudos to BESIX Infra for this generous initiative.
