A comfortable home and manageable energy bills

Structural and energy maintenance of existing senior housing in South Beijerland

As a reliable and committed full-service maintenance partner, Willems Vastgoedonderhoud provides planned, structural and energy maintenance, commissioned by housing associations in the South Holland region. The company values high customer satisfaction and close, long-term customer relationships. The relationship with HW Wonen is a good example of this. For about six years now, Willems Vastgoedonderhoud has been performing ongoing architectural and energy maintenance on this housing partner's senior citizen homes in the Hoeksche Waard region. Following projects in Nieuw-Beijerland, Heinenoord, Mijnsheerenland and Westmaas, Willems Vastgoedonderhoud recently improved and made more sustainable 57 senior citizen homes in Zuid-Beijerland.

A climate-neutral Hoeksche Waard in 2050. That is the ambition of HW Wonen, which initially aims to have no houses with energy labels E, F or G in its portfolio by 2028. To achieve this, the existing housing stock will be made transition-ready in several phases. This includes the 57 senior housing units in Zuid-Beijerland, which date from the 1980s. "A total of three types of homes are involved, with plastic or wooden window frames, a detached or attached storage shed and a variety of house plans," says project manager Mark Lentz. "Based on the type of house, we worked out an improvement and preservation plan, in which some of the houses received new window frames, while in other houses only the turning parts and fixed glass were replaced. Both the new and existing window frames and rotating parts were fitted with triple glazing. Roof tiles and grouting were replaced and both roofs, facades and floors were highly insulated. The asbestos present in the house was also remediated. To prevent residents from living in a balloon after this, a ventilation system with heat recovery was installed in each home. As a result, residents now benefit from a comfortable home as well as a manageable energy bill."

From the outside

The work was carried out on a block-by-block basis, with residents remaining in their homes. "To keep inconvenience to a minimum, most of the work was performed from the outside," Lentz says. "Per block of approximately eight homes, we were busy for about eight weeks, during which residents had to open the front door for us about eight to nine times. A resident consultant from Willems Property Maintenance visited the residents weekly to answer any questions. In addition, they were continuously kept informed of the planning and progress via a newsletter. In order to keep speed in the project, we were present in Zuid-Beijerland with a team of approximately thirty professionals. From scaffold builders to roofers, installers, carpenters and masons/joiners, with a superintendent providing daily management."

Model home

Prior to the work, Willems Vastgoedonderhoud made a model home, giving residents and their families a good understanding of the work. This also allowed the Rotterdam maintenance partner to fine-tune a few things. "As a result, the homes have been future-proofed in all areas," says Willems.