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Asbestos investigation and operative management of the decontamination of steamship De Rotterdam
Who hasn’t heard of the Rotterdam, the Holland America Line’s (HAL) only remaining steamship? The other liners which made up this proud fleet no longer exist. ‘This ship is still very much cherished by so many people,’ says Rob Hagens, the director of Woondrecht Consult who arranged the purchase. ‘Next year, when it’s completely renovated, the ship will sail into the Rotterdam harbour again during the world harbour days.’
Once, the Rotterdam was HAL’s flagship. This piece of industrial heritage deserves a better fate than the scrapheap. Rob Hagens is one of the initiators who saved the ship from destruction and will restore it to its former glory. The ship, which is 230 m long and thirteen storeys high, is now owned by property management company Woonbron from Rotterdam and IT-company Eurobalance B.V. The Rotterdam will moor at the Katendrechtse Hoofd in Rotterdam, and is expected to liven things up there.
‘The exploitation of the Rotterdam as a meeting place, a congress centre and a housing and working environment will create jobs for many young people. In the borough of Feijenoord an upholstering business will be created to reupholster the thousands of chairs aboard the ship. The old RDM shipyard houses the Albeda’ College’s sheet metal workshop. They will be involved in the renovation of the ship’s sheet iron work. Merchandising will be ‘Made in Katendrecht’. The ship’s crew will be wearing uniforms, as in old times. The entire ship is pervaded by the glorious past, except for the Lido restaurant. It had been damaged beyond repair by a previous renovation. That’s why we organised a competition for young interior designers. The restaurant will be redecorated according to the winning design and will get quite a contemporary atmosphere.
When sketching the Rotterdam’s future, Hagens is an enthusiastic storyteller. But he’s also realistic enough to realise that a lot has to be done before the ship is renovated.A lot of asbestos had been discovered on inspection of the ship. ‘There’s a lot of asbestos too in the 55.000 houses owned by Woondrecht and Woonbron. So that doesn’t make me nervous. In the middle of the night I sent a mail to Search Engineering and Consultancy because I needed expert and practical advice. I know Search, having worked with them on other projects, and I know they can deal with this. At seven o’ clock in the morning I already had received an answer and 24 hours later we were on board of the ship in Gibraltar. During the six weeks after that, Search made an inventory of all asbestos in the ship, drew up a all-embracing strategic plan and trained the Polish crew to work safely under conditions involving asbestos.’
Part of the asbestos will remain, safely isolated, so that it presents no health risk whatsoever. Search made a all-embracing plan to make the ship safe as far as asbestos is concerned, within the tight time limit set for asbestos removal and renovation. Parts which have been cleaned up are immediately released for renovation. In this project, Search co-operates closely with the nautical engineering firm Vuyk Engineering. Search is responsible for the operative management of the asbestos removal, Vuyk engineering for refurbishing the ship. Heinen & Hopman Engineering takes care of the air conditioning and Imtech does the work on the electrical installation. ‘It’s not an easy project. That’s why we chose quality companies, because we cannot afford to take any risks.
Search is going to train 150 people who can work under conditions involving asbestos. ‘They will have to be able to remove panelling safely. Search trained nine people in Gibraltar to do that, who all got their certificates. In the next six months 150 professionals – asbestos removers, carpenters, sheet metal workers, mechanics – will work for seven days a week to make the deadline. ‘We work with companies who like realising a complex project. I think we put together a very good team. I am fully confident that the ship will sail into the Rotterdam harbour on the day we planned.’
Once, the Rotterdam was HAL’s flagship. This piece of industrial heritage deserves a better fate than the scrapheap. Rob Hagens is one of the initiators who saved the ship from destruction and will restore it to its former glory. The ship, which is 230 m long and thirteen storeys high, is now owned by property management company Woonbron from Rotterdam and IT-company Eurobalance B.V. The Rotterdam will moor at the Katendrechtse Hoofd in Rotterdam, and is expected to liven things up there.
A true experience
‘The exploitation of the Rotterdam as a meeting place, a congress centre and a housing and working environment will create jobs for many young people. In the borough of Feijenoord an upholstering business will be created to reupholster the thousands of chairs aboard the ship. The old RDM shipyard houses the Albeda’ College’s sheet metal workshop. They will be involved in the renovation of the ship’s sheet iron work. Merchandising will be ‘Made in Katendrecht’. The ship’s crew will be wearing uniforms, as in old times. The entire ship is pervaded by the glorious past, except for the Lido restaurant. It had been damaged beyond repair by a previous renovation. That’s why we organised a competition for young interior designers. The restaurant will be redecorated according to the winning design and will get quite a contemporary atmosphere.
Direct response
When sketching the Rotterdam’s future, Hagens is an enthusiastic storyteller. But he’s also realistic enough to realise that a lot has to be done before the ship is renovated.A lot of asbestos had been discovered on inspection of the ship. ‘There’s a lot of asbestos too in the 55.000 houses owned by Woondrecht and Woonbron. So that doesn’t make me nervous. In the middle of the night I sent a mail to Search Engineering and Consultancy because I needed expert and practical advice. I know Search, having worked with them on other projects, and I know they can deal with this. At seven o’ clock in the morning I already had received an answer and 24 hours later we were on board of the ship in Gibraltar. During the six weeks after that, Search made an inventory of all asbestos in the ship, drew up a all-embracing strategic plan and trained the Polish crew to work safely under conditions involving asbestos.’
Team work
Part of the asbestos will remain, safely isolated, so that it presents no health risk whatsoever. Search made a all-embracing plan to make the ship safe as far as asbestos is concerned, within the tight time limit set for asbestos removal and renovation. Parts which have been cleaned up are immediately released for renovation. In this project, Search co-operates closely with the nautical engineering firm Vuyk Engineering. Search is responsible for the operative management of the asbestos removal, Vuyk engineering for refurbishing the ship. Heinen & Hopman Engineering takes care of the air conditioning and Imtech does the work on the electrical installation. ‘It’s not an easy project. That’s why we chose quality companies, because we cannot afford to take any risks.
Round-the-clock
Search is going to train 150 people who can work under conditions involving asbestos. ‘They will have to be able to remove panelling safely. Search trained nine people in Gibraltar to do that, who all got their certificates. In the next six months 150 professionals – asbestos removers, carpenters, sheet metal workers, mechanics – will work for seven days a week to make the deadline. ‘We work with companies who like realising a complex project. I think we put together a very good team. I am fully confident that the ship will sail into the Rotterdam harbour on the day we planned.’
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