Elvira Servaes
Senior Project Manager, lead works official at HFB, construction projects department
Within the construction projects department of Het Agentschap Facilitair Bedrijf, Elvira Servaes is senior project manager of execution. "We put construction projects on the market for various building owners within the Flemish government and supervise them until they are completely finished. One of the big dossiers in recent years has been the renovation of the Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp (KMSKA). The building closed in 2011, reopened in September of this year, and in the meantime underwent a real metamorphosis. I myself have been involved in this project for a good three years, succeeding a colleague."
"I developed a good rapport with all the construction partners over those years. But I found that I needed someone by my side who was more versed in techniques and could guide me toward completion. There was no one available in our agency, so based on our framework contract, I put the question to Ingenium. This did mean that they were involved very late, about a year before delivery in 2020. Then you have to stay on the back foot as a new player, because in such large and long projects you are already walking on eggshells. But first Nico and later Wouter sensed that very well and gave me advice 'in the back' on matters that were important.
'Chapeau' also that they settled into such a complex case in such a short period of time. As time went on, they were fully accepted as a full partner and also came more to the fore. The fact that they were experienced in the matter, already knew many of the partners around the table and there was no potential resentment from working together in previous projects, facilitated communication."
"Between the completion and the opening of the museum is almost two years, during which time the building obviously has to be kept up to standard. Since we had no one available internally for this, Ingenium also took on building management. Specifically, this involved a weekly tour of the site and a check of the digital building management system, to see if everything was still ok and signal any problems to the contractor, maintenance technicians or inspection authorities. Meanwhile, the KMKSA itself has recruited people to take over this, and a commercial party has also been appointed for technical maintenance. Ingenium thereby drew up the specifications for the maintenance contract and reviewed the bids submitted, and will also continue to supervise the start-up and follow-up of the maintenance contract."
"I found it a very nice and a very open collaboration in which we found each other quickly and certainly didn't have blinders on. There was always room to discuss their proposals and ask for alternatives. They look beyond the situation and take into account how you want it."
"Nico and Wouter were also very available to me: I could always call them and they quickly gave me an answer I could proceed with. Moreover, the great commitment also stood out. For Ingenium, this project is just one in a very large portfolio, and a project they were only dropped into at the very end. And yet I felt that this was not a 'jobke' but a real commitment, to master the dossier in a short period of time and, where necessary, to think and cooperate. In addition to their technical knowledge, their human knowledge and their ability to sense and deal with sometimes delicate situations was a real plus for me. Working together should be about building, and always in a constructive way. This is the only way to keep all parties - even in case of conflict - around the table to reach solutions."
