Spoorbuurt, Nijmegen | Making the Spoorbuurt in Nijmegen more sustainable

'Every window and door involved customization'

During the preservation of the 501 characteristic, pre-war homes in the Spoorbuurt neighborhood in Nijmegen, Verweij Houttechniek was commissioned by building consortium VOF Spoorbuurt to measure, produce and replace all moving parts. From the windows and doors to some (rotten) frames and including associated glazing and hardware.

Verweij Houttechniek is a smart systems partner in sustainable windows, doors, frames and prefabricated products, such as timber frame walls, dormers and sheds. "We specialize in renovation projects and work for the property maintenance sector, which we take care of from A to Z," says Andries van Dijk, Assembly Manager at Verweij Houttechniek. "We think along and give advice, after which we take care of the measuring, design, production and assembly under our own management and successively. Including communication with residents. The products are delivered to the project ready-made and made to measure, which means that on-site adjustments are not an issue and inconvenience to residents is kept to a minimum. In the Spoorbuurt neighborhood, we also took care of this entire process, except for the communication of the assembly planning to the residents, which was handled by the VOF
itself is taken care of."

The windows and doors contained a multitude of detailing, which served as the basis for the replacement products.

Eye for quality and residents

"The renovation work in the Spoorbuurt was carried out with an eye for both quality and residents," says Van Dijk. "Verweij Houttechniek's products and services fit in well with this.

In this project, we replaced 5,241 windows, 893 doors and 20 frames. Our smart Lamikon LongLife collection was chosen for the windows. The windows are made of 100% sustainably produced softwood combined with epoxy joints. The chosen paint system has a high gloss finish, maximizing our response to the municipal conservation status and intended, classic look of the homes. The Lamikon LongLife windows have a DUBO seal of approval.^®, making them among the most environmentally friendly products. Moreover, softwood windows insulate better than hardwood windows. "The windows are fitted with HR++ glazing. The Columbus collection from Verweij Houttechniek was chosen for the doors. "All the doors are made of sustainably produced and FSC-certified Meranti, because these hinged parts are significantly more heavily loaded." The windows and doors were returned to the rebates of the existing frames. This meant that every window and door involved custom work, Van Dijk said. "We measured all the windows and doors precisely and produced them in the correct dimensions and bevels, so planing on site was not necessary. All windows and doors were delivered ready-made and just-in-time to the construction site, where they could be assembled immediately."

Verweij Houttechniek delved into the archives and designed products that combine the appearance of yesteryear with the insulation values, safety, comfort and ease of operation of today.

Multiple detailing

In the Spoorbuurt neighborhood, Verweij Houttechniek had to deal with a variety of housing types. "Moreover, the windows and doors contained a multitude of detailing, which served as the basis for our replacement products. In the preparatory phase, we actively thought along with the municipality and building consortium VOF Spoorbuurt about which detailing and type of front doors were most suitable for this project, taking into account the municipal protection status of the homes. We dove into the archives and designed products that combine the look of yesteryear with the insulation values, safety, comfort and ease of operation of today."

Performance Obligation

A second challenge in the project was the tight UAV-GC contract form, says Van Dijk. "In all phases of construction (preparation, execution and aftercare), not only did we have to define exactly what work was performed and with what quality, but also how we were going to control this. This involved a lot of paperwork in the beginning, but all the residents of the Spoorbuurt neighborhood got what they were promised at the front. Namely: an energy-efficient, safe, comfortable and aesthetically pleasing home. We are very proud that we were able to make our contribution to this."