Construction company in growth

Sixty years old, but still full of ambition

Van Grunsven Group has been around for sixty years and is still full of ambitions. Not only is the company growing in size, it is also constantly expanding its operations. The construction and development company engages in project-based residential construction, non-residential construction, commercial housing, distribution centers and, increasingly, in-house site development.

As a committed family business, Van Grunsven prefers to answer every question as: it can be done. Together with their clients, the 150 employees think about how things can be done differently. How it can be done best. In construction, the health of people and the quality of life of the environment are considered. In doing so, Van Grunsven aims for the smallest possible ecological footprint.

At present, there are three branches: the head office in Erp, a branch in Nijmegen and a participation in Schijndel that deals mainly with hall construction. It is a true Brabant company with traditional values. Or as commercial director Francis van Haren puts it, "Nice and pragmatic and well-organized, but above all a damn good builder."

Custom

"We have a diverse portfolio. We can do a lot and build for different clients. We are not set up for mass and the same works; instead, you see a lot of variation with us," says Van Haren. What Van Grunsven deliberately does not do is private housing construction, transformations, renovations or restorations.
"As an organization, we're just better at project-based new construction. We work a lot in construction teams and with the same clients. We have established relationships that keep coming back to us and enjoy working with us."

The fact that clients regularly return to the total builder is probably because they always look at the question behind the question. If there is a preliminary design, the employees look at whether there are even better solutions possible. Value for money is always considered. "We can fill the client's needs well. For example, if a housing corporation comes with a particular issue, we draw on good methodologies to come up with a solution. Everything is customized with us," Van Haren said.

Complex urban construction projects

Actually, no job is too big and no demand too complex. This is evident when you look at the company's portfolio. A nice recent example is Block 5 on the Eemplein in Amersfoort. A residential building was erected there, 52 meters high and with 197 apartments. It involves a precast shell with a scaffold-free facade construction. The precast facade elements were placed on site without scaffolding. This was a logistical challenge, Van Haren agrees. "The construction pit is adjacent to the railroad, existing buildings and a tunnel trench. We are building cold against a shopping mall and had to deal with two thick power lines that the building crosses. However, these are tasks of our time. We are increasingly dealing with noise pollution, tight construction sites and restrictive environmental factors. We are equipped for that. It requires a longer preparation time, so you encounter fewer surprises during the project."

Communication with local residents

Van Grunsven is also currently building in densely populated Eindhoven, on a very limited site. On Leostraat, 102 homes and a communal courtyard garden will be built. It is one of the most circular projects in the southern Netherlands, as it uses concrete with a high percentage of recycled materials and reused materials from demolition. Again, it is being built against an existing neighborhood, in an area where many people live. This has to be taken into account. Van Haren: "It presents us with issues such as: how do you deal with the site layout? How do we phase the project? How do we communicate well with the neighborhood? Here there is just-in-time delivery." 

A special amount of time and energy goes into communicating with local residents. Van Grunsven even developed an app especially for this project in which interested parties are kept informed. If a nuisance activity is about to take place, it is mentioned in the app. Van Haren: "Building without nuisance is impossible, but we try to keep it to a minimum and inform people. Nearby residents then know exactly what to expect."  

ToonBeeldWonen

To even better meet the demands of our time, Van Grunsven developed the concept of ToonbeeldWonen. After all, clients and buyers have recognizable housing requirements that often recur. To match this image of the times, concept homes were developed with a short development time and high flexibility. After all, customization is and remains important. "We worked out all the technology and bottlenecks of ground-level and stacked houses. This creates a basic plan without facades, which the architect can work with to give it further shape. We can then indicate well in advance what the cost will be, without a precise design. The starting point is affordable and quality living," Van Haren said.

Area Development

This way gives a nice picture of Van Grunsven's working method. But it goes much further. For the past three years the company has also been engaged in area development. This involves buying land on its own account and further developing it into residential areas with fifty to three hundred homes. "It's not just buying a piece of land to do a building development. We design the public space and have the full know-how in-house. By partnering with major national developers, we can share expertise and spread risk here as well," Van Haren says. For example, some 250 homes are currently being developed in Moergestel, where several developers are active. It concerns the former campsite De Bosfazant where both rental and owner-occupied homes will be built. These are expected in 2027 at the earliest. "This is the ambition and scale we want to go into. We are a total builder that builds and develops. This is where we want to continue to grow."

Ambition

This year Van Grunsven is celebrating a great anniversary. After sixty years, the third generation is at work within the family business. It doesn't stop here, however, Van Haren knows: "We see that building and development require more and more expertise and manpower. We must continue to develop, possibly with new branches in areas where there are new opportunities. It is not a goal in itself to get bigger, it is a necessity to keep up with what the market needs. In addition, we think it is important that people enjoy working with us. We are always looking for young talent and they get the opportunity to grow quickly. We assign the right projects to the right people. Working hard is not bad, but having fun is very important. It is good to grow, but we remain compact and pragmatic."