Week of 27 March
4 news from Belgium:
1. Heavy lifting in the Venice of the North
Yesterday, the steel bridge deck of the Bombardier Bridge in Bruges was removed. BESIX Belgium will renovate the bridge deck of the bicycle and pedestrian bridge, the concrete components will be repaired and the road lining and bridge deck joints renewed. In addition, there will be two new piers under the cantilevered access ramp that will dampen bridge vibrations. Watch this spectacular operation in the video below.
2. New offices for Socogetra completely made in BESIX
Our colleagues of Socogetra have moved into brand new headquarters! It’s another BESIX entity, Wust, which built it, but our colleagues from Socogetra carried out the earthworks and surroundings themselves. The new building, which is intended to be a showcase for our group's many skills, will be functional, open, communicative and comfortable, and will be awarded BREEAM Excellent certification. We wish all the best to our Socogetra colleagues for their new endeavours in their new workplace!
3. Permit received for a new development project by Vanhout
Vanhout has received the environmental permit for its beautiful new project called 'Den Tram', which will include 49 residential units in the centre of Heist-op-den-berg in the Antwerp province.
Congratulations to our colleagues for this new development project!
This complex has been designed with great attention to sustainability, as it will include solar panels, individual heat pumps, rainwater recovery, underfloor heating, and top cooling. The entire design is also based on living comfort with spacious terraces, smart orientations, green areas, underground parking,... And the typical façades of the former workers’ houses will be kept.
4. Archimedes screws explained
BESIX Environment is currently renovating 3 locks to ensure long-term operation and solve mobility problems on the Charleroi-Brussels canal. In addition, they are adding 3 Archimedes screw pumps to each lock.
During dry periods, water is lost upstream at the lock, due to the lock work. The Archimedes screw pumps will pump the water upstream to ensure and maintain the right water level of the canal upstream. During rainy weather, one of the three screw pumps on 2 locks is also able to work in the opposite direction. That way, they function as a turbine and produce green electricity. In the second picture below you can see what an Archimedes screw looks like (this one being a huge one from the Royerslock in Antwerp).
And then this...
We leave Belgium to go to New Zealand with this video of the works in progress at the Te Kaha Multi-Use Arena site in Christchurch. Groundworks begin to wrap up, foundation works are well underway and the team prepares to start building the superstructure. Check out the last three months of construction captured on timelapse from the BESIX Watpac project office.