Ambition at Heijmans construction company is high: 'We are creators of the healthy living environment'

There are different opinions in society about (the necessity of striving for) sustainability. At Heijmans Construction Company, this is recognized. Nevertheless, there is a clear corporate mission. Speaking are Heleen Herbert, director of strategy, and Thijs Huijsmans, sustainability program manager. “We are the makers of a healthy living environment,” say the pair. “We don't want to be ‘ordinary builders.’ We make extra meters. We hope to inspire, drive and thus take the chain to that healthy living environment.”

The strategic policy is based on five pillars. “For example, the first is about well-being for the people,” Herbert says. “When we build we must always ask ourselves whether we have done well for them. Also in terms of sustainability - the second pillar - we challenge ourselves: is everything we do (building, that is) good for the planet?” However, third, the HOW question is also essential. “There is great scarcity in the labor market,” says Huijsmans. “So our task is to seek connection in the chain, discovering how we can innovate better or faster. And besides: is everything manufacturable? Yes, we have to change our processes and products. A lot has to change. Finally, because technical developments are happening faster than ever, we need a lot of new knowledge within our company. From ecologists to psychologists and from sociologists to data scientists. We want to understand society and be able to interpret its direction. If we don't, we won't know what and how to build. And, where.”

Sustainability

That sustainability is very high on the agenda in all these facets should be obvious. But yes ... the political landscape in the Netherlands is fickle, and it is precisely on a topic like (the need for) sustainability that people have different opinions. “I understand that people have their own opinions. Fine!”, says Herbert. “But what we especially need is consistency in policy. You can't formulate new ambitions every year. So we make ourselves heard in The Hague. We don't complain, but we make proposals. And we invite policy makers to show them how we do it.”

“In concrete and steel construction, there are many tasks but it is sometimes difficult to fulfill them. There are far too many and sometimes conflicting regulations. However, concrete and steel are essential to our sector. That is why we have set high ambitions. The Netherlands wants to be CO2 neutral by 2050. We want to have achieved that by 2040.”

Heijmans formulates those ambitions based on three perspectives:

1. Material use must go down: thus design adjustments

“We work a lot with co-makers, who are given room to innovate. A good example is the development of a pile, where the core no longer possesses concrete. So that means you need less concrete - thus less CO2 emissions - without sacrificing performance. There are also gains to be made in the transport chain in this regard.”

2. Changing the composition of the material

“If we look at gravel and sand, we can already recycle it at an abundant rate. A good development. Or consider our experience with the application of geopolymer concrete. We are also investigating the possibilities and opportunities of CO2-negative cement: we are now doing this mainly in our Infra division. That takes time, but governing is looking ahead.”

3. Alternative materials

“In terms of our use of steel, we are increasingly focusing on reuse: donor steel. We need to know much more about where what is and see if we can speed up the flow of materials. In short, every day we have to think about the reusability of materials.”

A look at the near future

Herbert and Huijsmans have one piece of advice for the new administration that can hopefully take office in 2026. “Dare to think for the long term. Set clear goals and then if there is bad news on the way to that goal, keep your back straight. Choose consistent policies. That is in the best interest of the industry. But apart from that: we - at Heijmans - still have our own route to all the goals. Because our goal is and remains: making a healthy living environment.”