The ARTIS Aquarium: fully preserved and ready for the future

The complete restoration and preservation of a historic building dating from 1881. A wonderful challenge, which Kwakkel B.V., in collaboration with client Salverda Bouw, tackled with both hands. "With our expertise in demolition, stripping, drilling, sawing and asbestos removal, we run many ongoing renovation projects in factories and do bathroom, kitchen and toilet renovations. But the ARTIS aquarium is a very special one," said Gerard Koobs, business manager at Kwakkel B.V.

After years of exposure to saltwater in the basins, it was time to renovate ARTIS' aquarium and make it sustainable with the latest techniques. In May 2022, Kwakkel BV began the indoor demolition, stripping and dismantling of the walls, floors, doors and installations. "Visually you don't see much from the outside, but inside the entire building has been stripped. We demolished more than 1,800 tons of debris from the building."

A reliable partner

The ARTIS Aquarium is a unique project and therefore requires proportionately more attention and coordination. "To meet the schedule, for example, we have a lot of contact with our contractor on the job. Sometimes you then have to temporarily scale up. Ultimately, it is of great importance, that the succeeding parties can also start their work on time."

"In the first week of February, most of our work was finished and our equipment removed. Everything completely according to the agreed schedule. This makes us a reliable partner for our clients. Only the drilling work is still ongoing so that the installers can do their work. Sustainability is very important to us in projects like this: much of the work is done with our demolition robot. As a result, we mainly provide physical relief and there are no CO2 emissions."

Inventiveness is decisive

Large projects, like the aquarium, require a lot of inventiveness. "How do we go about it? Renovating a listed building is not an everyday project. With our demolition work, we lay the foundation for the entire renovation. Other companies depend on the quality and speed of our work."

"The variety and challenge of these projects is very satisfying," according to Koobs. "Especially with this project, in the end you can go back and still kind of enjoy the foundation you laid. The final result in 2025 is going to look fantastic, I'm sure!"