"Engineering and building have to be fun"

When developing and realising a building for a food processing company, there is much you have to consider, which is something that Bas te Riele, food specialist with Aan de Stegge Twello knows very well. Like no other, he knows that everything revolves around hygiene and food safety.

“In the Netherlands, every food company has to comply at least with the HACCP standard (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points), but this standard and the requirements have not been pragmatically incorporated in building solutions", says Bas te Riele. "Based on a tool we developed ourselves, we created a design brief (DB) for the entrepreneur who wants to build new premises. When working out the plans, we anticipate the statutory requirements. This tool helps our (potential) client to tick off his criteria. In most cases, there will be additional demands; demands from the clients of the food manufacturing company, such as BRC and IFS requirements. To get a good overview of all the input from the DB, integral collaboration has become the new trend."

Expertise

After having built 25 food company premises over the last decade, including a total of 65,000 m² for eight food clients in the past two years, Aan de Stegge Twello has proven to have the expertise when it comes to advising food companies about the engineering and building of their premises. Bas: "There is basically no other Dutch building company that is capable to supervise and give advice about the entire building process for the food manufacturing sector, right from the engineering and design process, meaning the first conversation. In this, we are unique. We do notice that companies 'have to' opt for our building company early on in the process. This requires some getting used to for entrepreneurs. Choosing an architect is somehow easier for them".

Collaboration

Aan de Stegge Twello offers its clients one (formal) point of contact for design and realisation. "Another aspect our clients like is that we secure the budget early on in the process", says Bas. "Besides that, we offer our clients openness and transparency during the entire engineering and execution process. We increasingly often collaborate with the client when we procure the building parts that are specifically suitable for a building where food will be produced. Engineering and building must be fun, not a fight. Collaboration is the magic word. Entrepreneurs are more and more seeing the benefits of this. Right from the start, we have regular consultation meetings with the various parties that are involved. This enables us to avoid surprises during the process. Collaboration also provides a pooling of knowledge, which is beneficial for all of us. More and more clients believe in our work method. They are our ambassadors."

Recently finished projects in the food sector:

• Hems – Fortuna Oss – 4,500 m² (processing of pork, beef, and chicken)

Meat supplier Hems left its nostalgic farmstead in Netersel in November 2017 and settled in new-built premises in Oss. Building company Aan de Stegge Twello supported Hems from start to finish during the engineering, development, and realisation of a sustainable building that meets all the required food-safety standards. Robert van Grinsven, CEO of Hems: "We were stretching our capacity to the limits but expanding at our old location proved to be impossible. The advantage of a new-built is that you can determine exactly how large your freezing and cooling cells and other spaces need to be. We had clear ideas about efficiently structured production lines and the position of the incoming and outgoing goods. This could all be incorporated into the new design".

• Ameco – 10,500 m² Apeldoorn (beef – slaughter)

Aan de Stegge Twello supported Ameco in its selection process for the new location at the Ecofactorij in Apeldoorn. Unique to this project were the fast preparation trajectory and the short building period: Engineering and building in just 13 months. "With a view on the current competitive market, we don't think that this can be achieved right now", says Bas. "But we are still very efficient. Jan van Westreenen couldn't be more proud of the newly built premises and speaks very highly about all parties which he and Aan de Stegge Twello have brought together in the team."

• Bresc Werkendam – 5,550 m² (specialist in garlic, sauces, and herbs and spices)

The new premises of Bresc was completed and delivered on 14 September 2018. Arjan Hak, CEO of Bresc: "We wanted an engineering builder with excellent references and experience in the food sector. Aan de Stegge Twello is a strong partner when considering scope, time, and money: what do you get, when, at how much does it cost? They took a lot of this work out of our hands and always gave a good insight: this choice has these (financial) consequences. They also focus on solutions and are proactive".

• Van Dijk groothandel Kampen (food logistics) – 2,750 m²

Work in progress:

• Euroma Zwolle– 26,000 m²
• Postuma IJsselmuiden (AGF) - 10,000 m²

Projects in start-up phase:

• Mocca d’Or coffee beans (coffee roasters) in Zwolle – 2,750 m²
• Ruitenberg Ruinerwold (innovative ingredients for the food industry) - 5,000 m²

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