In the early months of 2021, as winter lay over the city of Delft, Erik Middelkoop and his colleagues from Royal HaskoningDHV’s Advanced Technology and Research Group gathered at the newly constructed operating rooms of Reinier de Graaf Hospital.
They had come to carry out tests – a combination of sophisticated digital modelling and old-school science – to see if all the work they had done over the last two years had paid off.
As they gathered together in the new building’s reception, a stone fireplace sat waiting to be kindled; ready for new patients. Patients like Aart, a resident of Delft who would be among the first through the door - should Erik’s team be successful...
“We were… nervous. Yeah, for sure.” Erik says, looking back a year on: “It’s nature, you cannot predict it perfectly - but the building was finished at that point, so failure was a scary prospect.”
Across the city, Frank Bouhuis, Strategic Real Estate Director of Reinier de Graaf Hospital in Delft, waited to hear the results. He had surgeons ready to put this new building to use – and patients needing the high-quality care it promised:
“We were anxious to see if the building would react as predicted.” Frank says via video call: “We had faith in Royal HaskoningDHV – but faith, you know… faith is good, but when the stakes are this high, you need to be sure.”
As Erik’s team carried out their tests and the sensors and models did their work – the project team held their breath…