A unique identity and appearance for de Veste.
Until the year 2000, Brandevoort was an agricultural area with a centuries-old history of habitation. The decision of Helmond to build no less than six thousand homes in this area has proven to be a golden opportunity for about 17,000 residents of the municipality.
The heart of Brandevoort is de Veste, consisting of narrow streets and stately residences surrounded by water and greenery. Residential block Veste 24 is one of the last blocks in this heart. Here, the image of an old nostalgic village emerges. All houses are fully constructed in historicizing architecture. This does not directly refer to specific building styles, but rather to romanticized ideas of how the past must have looked. It’s all invented, but that doesn’t make it any less attractive.
In collaboration with Scala Architecten and Omni architecten bv, Pauwert Architectuur designs the residential blocks. Rich ornamentation, historicizing accents, and traditional elements characterize the architecture. Various architects work on the architecture of the different residential neighborhoods.
For the realization of 35 ground-bound homes and 28 apartments in De Veste, Development Combination Cedrus-Adriaans Brandevoort V.O.F. chose the expertise of Muller Bouw b.v.. Construction and Technology Manager, Frank Liefkens: ‘Brandevoort is the modern variant of a traditional village. Due to the positioning of the different residential areas, you are never far removed from all the facilities that Brandevoort has to offer. The realization of 63 homes was -and is- a fantastic assignment for our company. Because a unique identity and appearance has been developed for all homes, this was also a challenging assignment for which we sought collaboration with parties we were certain could actually realize what the architects had envisioned. Fortunately, Holonite was already specified. That gave us certainty that the frames for the windows would be well taken care of.’
There’s a first time for everything
‘We have been able to deliver our products in other sub-projects within Brandevoort as well,’ says account manager Mark Nuijten. ‘The successful results were the basis for our appointment in the specifications. However, Muller had a first with the round windows, as we had never before made frames in this shape. In theory, anything is possible, but practice can be stubborn. That’s why we are extra proud of the result that fully meets the wishes of the architects.’
Precision is key
For optimal and long-lasting results, Holonite preferably works with fixed installation partners. For the work in De Veste, Ben van der Meijden with his installation company was responsible. Nuijten: ‘We always aim for installation by applicators known to us, but a contractor must of course be open to that. Fortunately, Muller was. Working with Van der Meijden’s team is synonymous with perfect results for us. That’s why we were very pleased that this installer dared to take on this first. Thanks in part to his work, the result is as expected.’ Liefkens emphasizes the specialized nature of this assignment: ‘Making round frames stands or falls with precision. The Holonite team came to measure after the shell construction phase and then conferred with the mold producer. That they actually managed to get the round frames out of the molds in this way, I find admirable. As Mark said: practice is often more stubborn than a product on paper. Van der Meijden put the finishing touches during the installation.’
Liefkens does not hide the fact that he is satisfied with partner Holonite. ‘I work with Holonite in almost every project and it has never happened that something couldn’t be solved. Agreements are always kept, the quality requirement is at least matched, and every coordination is confirmed via email. If I say -and I realize it’s a somewhat boring conclusion- that projects run flawlessly, I’m not lying.’