Meanwhile, the year 2021 is nearing its end. A year in which the coronavirus once again prevailed. And a year in which SealteQ nevertheless managed to look back again with a positive feeling. Also in 2021 we were allowed to do wonderful work for our clients, we welcomed new colleagues, we launched our own onboarding module in our personnel app and no less than two branches moved to new premises. How do the directors of SealteQ Group and the various branches look back on the past year? A tour of the fields.
SealteQ Group
Martin van der Leest: ,,The most important thing, again this year, is that everyone comes to work healthy and goes home healthy. Safety is paramount at SealteQ. That also worked out well last year. We successfully completed more than 2,000 projects throughout the Netherlands; a large majority came from repeat customers. They were challenging projects. SealteQ Group has become even more of an organization with a solving capacity for client problems. A track record and engineering capability based on nearly 50 years of experience. We deliver innovative customization. And with the relocations of SealteQ Ivacon and West, our broad services in the Randstad grew even further.”
Robert Lunenborg: ,,Although most of our projects in 2021 could go ahead as usual despite the corona crisis, it was quite a tough year. A year in which we were faced with a number of challenges, precisely because of the corona crisis and new legislation and regulations. By persevering, not running away and always wanting to look for the best solution – a mentality that belongs to SealteQ – we have moved on valiantly through the year. This was also possible because of the good relations with and understanding of our partners and clients. Together we always come out of it.”
Peter Westra: ,,Because I was able to complete the negotiations for Combinatie Herepoort in Groningen last year, I was able to become part of SealteQ Group as a shareholder. As an extension of that, together we managed to get a nice additional contract from Combinatie Herepoort. We have created a very nice position in the markets where it should be mainly about protecting and preserving what you have, instead of building new. That has never been more important. Nitrogen, CO2, sustainable (re)use of materials: we are facing an enormous challenge. One in whose solutions SealteQ can play an important role.”
Gerthé Klaassens: ,,The past year our role as an expert and thus our position as a partner for our customers became even stronger. We now exist for almost 50 years and have acquired an enormous amount of knowledge and expertise. That also has its effect on new employees. They enter a company where they can learn a great deal. We explicitly give them that when they start with us. Growth and development of our employees was already important and remains so. We are also investing in making the transfer of knowledge easier, for example through our new onboarding module in our personnel app. By taking these great steps, we are ensuring that we can play our role as an expert to the customer even better.
SealteQ Heerenveen
Gerrit Uilenreef: ,,It was a hectic, but good year with clients who keep coming back. And we went from Heerenveen across the border, to Belgium, for concrete repairs to a water treatment plant. Because we have so much knowledge and expertise in house about different disciplines – concrete repair and plastic floors, for example – our clientele grew and explicitly asked for it. Customers increasingly present a problem to us and we then come up with the solution. And if we don’t have one immediately in Heerenveen, we call in the specialists from one of our other branches. In this way we help almost all customers with the most sustainable solution for the future.”
SealteQ MCB
Heidy Moors: ,,It was an exciting year for MCB. We welcomed new clients and saw existing ones return. That is of course a great compliment. We also look back on quite a few nice projects. There was a project with extremely high quality requirements. With our experience and expertise we were able to meet that challenge, with a satisfied customer as a result. Also, a large consignment of sheet piles – which we provided with a three-layer coating system – is crossing the English Channel to England. They will be used for the construction of a new tunnel in London. We are looking forward to 2022!”
SealteQ North
Peter Schultinga: “For us, the highlight of last year was the renovation of the Stevin lock. The lock at Den Oever is part of the Afsluitdijk. A monumental object that was completely drained for the renovation. This has never been done before. The Stevinsluis was built more than 75 years ago and after that no one has ever seen what we saw last year. That’s kind of special. And so last year – and we will have many more such special works in the years to come.”
SealteQ Ivacon
Simon Klein: ,,Looking back on last year from Ivacon, growth is the word of 2021. We moved to new premises in June, more than twice as big and much more accessible than our old location. It was a big step forward for us. We also grew in the number of assignments we did for our clients. With most of them we already have a long-term relationship, so it’s a compliment that we keep getting their trust. And we welcomed a number of new colleagues, so our team is also growing. We look forward to the coming year with pleasure.”
SealteQ West
Chris Uittenbogaard: ,,Our move from Pijnacker to Waddinxveen was the highlight of 2021 for us. We were looking for a suitable location for 3.5 years. The fact that we ended up here is very pleasing. The finishing touches are being added, so we are getting a little closer to being completely finished every week. In terms of our projects, we got some great things done. A challenging parking garage in Arnhem and the first phase in the Delft Industrial District for housing cooperative Vestia, to name just two. The tone has been further set and we have taken another wonderful leap.”