'Prices continued to rise until delivery'

Building in an unstable market

Vishandel Schot has a brand new business premises. The building was completed in early May 2022, allowing the seafood supplier to move in exactly on the planned date. But given the unstable market, this certainly did not happen by itself.

Vishandel Schot in Tholen specializes in supplying fish, seafood and shellfish to the catering and retail sectors. This required a commercial building with an office area, a cold store and a freezer house for storing the incoming fish, various filleting and processing areas and halls for logistics. "In terms of construction, this building project did not present any problems," says Jaco Corbijn, project manager of Bouwbedrijf Schrijver. "It was the surrounding factors, such as the unstable market, the high requirements for foodsafe construction and the short construction time that made this work challenging."

Unstable market

The unstable market was already asserting itself during the preparation phase. "We calculated the quantities of steel needed and ordered them," Corbijn gives as an example, "but even after the order was placed, prices kept rising. And this continued until the moment of delivery. The price increases occurred particularly in steel and panel construction. Then you're basically talking about the entire outer shell. Fortunately, the building materials were available."

Foodsafe building

Because Vishandel Schot operates in the food industry, the environment had to be arranged in such a way that a high work hygiene can be maintained here. This is subject to the rules as included in the NVWA. Corbijn: "These rules were also included in the specifications. In particular, they require great care. Just think of smooth finishes, properly sealed seams, lots of tiling and well-considered material choices. For this reason, a lot of stainless steel was also used in the interior. This material scores highly in all areas."

Short construction time

But as much as circumstances intensified the work, they did not change the deadline. Vishandel Schot's move date was fixed. "The concrete piles, for example, were not delivered until weeks later, so the start of construction was also pushed back weeks. So we already started with a hefty backlog on our schedule. Through very tight planning and being on top of everything, we still managed to meet our commitments. But honestly, I'm still surprised that we managed to pull it off."

Meanwhile, Vishandel Schot has moved into the new premises and operations are already up and running. "It has become a beautiful, light commercial building with clean lines. The beautiful, dark bricks accentuate this even more. Good to see that the result has not suffered in any way."

The total installation package in four months

Visser Installatietechniek installed all installations for the new building of Vishandel Schot, with the exception of the refrigeration and security installations. This took place over a period of four months.
"It was a big job with a relatively short execution time," says Ad Duvekot, general manager of Visser Installatietechniek in Poortvliet, Zeeland. "This certainly made planning a challenge. But - thanks in part to careful preparation - everything went smoothly. We delivered on time with a minimal number of remaining items."

Total Installer
Visser Installatietechniek installed the heating installation with air conditioning units for cooling and heating, heat recovery installation, underfloor heating in the cold cells and installations for rainwater drainage, plumbing and lighting. And yet there was one point of contact for this entire project. "We are a total installer and that is a great advantage for the customer," Duvekot explains. "During and after construction, Vishandel Schot has to deal with one point of contact. In case of calamities he simply calls that one, familiar contact person. This person knows the situation and is thus the best person to solve the problem quickly."
Duvekot is also thickly satisfied with the atmosphere during the project. "The cooperation with Bouwbedrijf Schrijver and with the subsidiary contractors for the refrigeration and security installations went smoothly and pleasantly."

Aluminum as a beautiful entrance

Goemaat supplied the aluminum window frames and curtain walls for the new-build of Vishandel Schot in Tholen. This involved a total of 70 m2 of curtain walls and 45 m2 of window frames. This was all produced in their own factory in Oud-Gastel and assembled by their own employees. The Goemaat company produces, delivers and assembles window frames and facades made of glass, aluminum and plastic. From the branches in Goeder-eede, Oud-Gastel and Goes, the entire southwestern Netherlands is served, from Zeeland and West Brabant to Rotterdam. The company arrived at the fish trade in Tholen through Bouwgroep Schrijver, a regular client. "The work took place at the end of last year. So for us, the project has already been completed. It is a project that went well and looks neat. The client is satisfied and so are we," says Erik Vervaart, work foreman at Goemaat.

Most striking, besides the entire façade of course, is the typesetting frame of the entrance. This sticks out a bit and literally and figuratively forms the entrance. Another special component is the fire-resistant window frames, which were also produced in our own factory. Goemaat's aluminum bears the VMRG seal of approval, which means that all standards for insulation value, durability, heat and pressure resistance are met.