Mauritian paint system creates desired concrete look

Some 24,000 square meters of walls were painted in the transformation of the Stationspost building in The Hague. Another 7,500 square meters of beams and columns were painted in a concrete look. Schildersbedrijf Groenenboom applied the paintwork and was involved in the selection of paint systems at an early stage of the project.

"About 2.5 years ago, KCAP Architects invited us to the then vacant Station Post Building," says Groenenboom project manager Sebastian Dresen. "The architect wanted to keep the existing concrete structure visible as much as possible. However, the concrete had to be preserved. He was looking for a suitable paint system for this purpose. A product that is strong and durable while providing the desired concrete look. We set up a number of tests and finally arrived at the Rodrigues product, a high-quality paint system from Mauritius." For the walls in the office area, Groenenboom applied the "Kalahari" paint system. This created a clay stucco look. The walls on the façade side, the toilet groups and the general areas have white paintwork.

Crisscrossing the building

Groenenboom performed the painting work on behalf of contractor combination JP van Eesteren-BESIX. "We started in September 2020," says Dresen. "The work was in full swing then. While one floor was being demolished and chopped, the other floor was already being finished. Our painters were working crisscrossing the building. Sometimes we suddenly had to scale up because something had to be finished at short notice. That is precisely where our strength lies. We can switch quickly and flexibly in large-scale projects. We have the capacity for that. Not just in terms of numbers of people, but also in terms of expertise. Our personnel are well trained and can get to work quickly after a brief explanation. On a project like this, that's what makes the difference."