With rest areas to prepare for exams

Renovate while students continue to live there

The plans for the major maintenance of student housing in Delft are clear. The housing complex must be able to withstand the coming years, with the emphasis on fire safety and maintenance. However, there are some conditions attached. The students must have the peace and quiet to prepare for their exams; during the exams they must be able to use a room in the complex where no work is being done, and if facilities are temporarily out of order, a replacement must be arranged.

Client DUWO Foundation wants the outside of Krakeelhof to have its facades repaired and refreshed; on the inside, it wants to replace all sanitary facilities. Because the bedrooms will not be tackled, the students will retain their sleeping quarters during the major maintenance work. Hemubo is renovating the complex per "dwelling," which will house about sixteen to eighteen students.

Emergency facilities

To provide study space for the students during the work, Hemubo is converting a vacant building on the site into a rest area called the Meeting Point. Here it is furnishing three living rooms on the first floor with kitchen, sanitary facilities, washing machines and dryers. On the second floor, 40 study areas will be set up with Wifi where students can study quietly while working.

Communications

A complex manager and social manager are the mouthpiece between students and Hemubo employees. Through newsletters, app-groups and information evenings, they communicate what is about to happen and when this involves noise pollution. Hemubo has appointed its own resident coordinator. The combination between the complex manager and social manager of Duwo and the resident coordinator of Hemubo proves to be an excellent form of communication towards the students.   

Work on the facade

The work on the facade is carried out from mobile suspended platforms. These are always moved to the site of the work. Movable pontoons in the water act as an additional safety measure. Once the safety measures are in place, the concrete will be checked and the painting work will be carried out.

 Safer

"It will be a good feeling when we leave the complex safe again," anticipates Guido Brinkman, Hemubo's work planner. "We encounter unusual situations. For example, there are refrigerator models whose energy consumption is four times higher than the new models. Because we from Duwo also look at safety and affordability for students, we place two modern ones per apartment.
energy-efficient refrigerators." 

Beyond the electrical challenges, major maintenance regularly requires inventiveness. For example, in the inner grounds of the complex is a large parking lot where Hemubo has set up its construction site. However, the parking lot is difficult to access due to the presence of a monumental gate. Hemubo's Materiel Management Department therefore developed a flat cart to get the storage containers, chains and other equipment into the courtyard. "Thanks to this inventiveness, together we can minimize the inconvenience to the students."