Week of 24 October
1. Chairman’s visit on Warsan Waste-to-Energy project (Dubai)
On 25 October 2022, Johan Beerlandt paid a visit to the Waste-to-Energy project site, to witness the impressive progress so far. The project is on the verge of starting the commissioning process, which is the main focus in the upcoming months, whilst construction will slowly reach substantial completion. Go, go, go, team!
The Dubai Waste-to-Energy plant will be one of the largest plants of its kind in the world: it will process 1.9 million tonnes of waste per year to generate 200 MW of sustainable electricity.
2. BESIX and the bright young minds (Belgium)
Last week, Geert Aelbrecht, Chief People Officer, handed over the BESIX Prize at the Faculty of Engineering of Ghent University (Belgium) to two young graduated students, Laurens Demol & Robbe De Grootte, for their thesis on "Influence of connection details on the behaviour of prestressed hollow vaults subjected to membrane action". The BESIX prize is awarded once a year to Civil Engineering laureates who make an outstanding contribution concerning innovating or improving the properties, quality and technological and economic usability of materials, the construction process itself and construction methods.
3. Australian study tour in Brussels (Belgium)
Australian policy advisors from the Master Builders Association of the state of Victoria have organised a study tour in Europe to understand and benchmark the issues facing building and construction. Their steps took them to the project of Henneaulaan (Brussels) where they met project engineers and managers. Thank you to the BESIX colleagues who spent time welcoming and sharing info with the Australian peers.
Works on Henneaulaan consist mainly of redesigning the entrances and exits to the Brussels Ring Road and replacing the aging bridge for a safer and better traffic flow for all users.
4. Splendid milestone reached in Nachtigal (Cameroon)
Another step forward on the Nachtigal hydroelectric project: the first penstock has been completed and installed! There will be 7 penstocks in total.
Works on Nachtigal consist of the Design & Build of a 1.5 km long, 14 m high dam wall, a 3 km long supply canal, a hydro-electric plant and water intake installations. When in use, the installation will generate a total of 420 MW of renewable energy through water, covering up to 30% of the country's energy needs.
... and then this: “It’s a new toy every day” (Belgium)
You might have caught the news a while ago: the Lego Group has decided to build their 14th entertainment park in Belgium. You won’t be surprised to hear that BESIX Belgium is actively working on this tender! A couple of colleagues from Tender and Operations welcomed Lego representatives earlier this week for an in-depth working session. The name tags for this meeting were particularly interesting. Let’s bet the Client will remember this meeting with a smile. All the best for the next steps, dear colleagues!
