A.HAK MAGAZINE
annual review 2013 PUBLICATION FOR CLIENTS, PARTNERS AND STAFF NUMBER 8 | MAY 2014 | VOLUME 3
‘ Innovation across the board’ MARCO VAN GEENHUIZEN CEO
Global operations Pipelines & Facilities: integration and internationalization
Renewable energy Investing in the future of the energy industry
A.Hak’s 50th anniversary Results in the anniversary year boost confidence
HELICOPTER VIEW This annual review is a thematic publication of the A.Hak magazine, in which we reflect on some highlights of the past year. 2013 was a special year, as A.Hak was founded in 1963 we celebrated our 50th anniversary. It also became a special year because we managed to achieve an enormous growth in revenue, based on both exceptional and normal projects, which are all equally important to us. One of those projects, the construction of a transport pipeline for the NAM between a gas field in Groningen and the underground gas storage facility in Norg, led to this phenomenal aeriel view of an A.Hak team working in a typical Dutch landscape.
PREAMBLE
Global investments in sustainable innovations 2013 was a year on which we can reflect with a sense of satisfaction due to various reasons. We celebrated our fiftieth anniversary with large festivities in the Walibi Holland amusement park and by publishing a great anniversary book for the readers of this magazine. The financial results attained by the firm in 2013 are also quite satisfying. The joint revenue of our companies increased with no less than 27% in comparison to 2012, a growth that partially originated from the Dutch market, but mostly in the international market. I did expect more of the operating results, which added up to just over 4%. However, upon looking at the global economy, these certainly are results we can be proud of.
colophon PHOTOGRAPHY Maarten van der Voorde and others COPYWRITING Richard van Santen Adriaan van Hooijdonk Senid Salihovic CHIEF EDITOR Richard van Santen CONCEPT/DESIGN
We also made good progress in clustering the company segments, which allows us to achieve even more synergy in our knowledge and capabilities. At the end of 2013 the first division officially started, carrying the name Pipelines & Facilities. In this division, the A.Hak companies focusing on constructing and installing transport pipelines, industrial pipelines and all accompanying facilities cooperate intensively. Together they will build forth on and expand the A.Hak tradition of successfully operating in the global market. 2013 was also a year in which we were able to further invest in equipment and new locations, but mostly in knowledgeable people. I wish these new colleagues a great and above anything else, safe career within our organization. We also spent special attention to sustainability, and will continue to do so. Torrgas and REDstack, companies with the objective of commoditizing new concepts in the field of renewable energy, have made impressive progress. This progress and the way these companies are being integrated into the organization fit well within the formation of the new division Renewable Energy, another development that is discussed in this Annual review.
Medamo, Rotterdam TRANSLATION Founding Translate PRODUCTION NPN Drukkers
And I am glad to inform that this innovative strength is not limited to this new division alone, but that it is characterizing for all our companies. Robots that are able to inspect storage tanks autonomously, new methods to carry out increasingly longer drillings, lighting masts powered by solar energy and deep-sea coating. A.Hak is developing all these initiatives within the own organization, and that is one of the reasons why I am confident that we are on the road to success and can look towards the future with confidence.
CONTACT communicatie@a-hak.nl
Marco van Geenhuizen NR 8 | MAY 2014 VOLUME 3
CEO
CONTENTS annual review 2013
09 A home away from home The Middle East has been a second domestic market to A.Hak for decades. The Pipelines & Facilities division will further expand its international activities here and elsewhere.
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Renewable Energy
Integrated services
The Renewable Energy division enters into the challenging quest for new sustainable energy models.
A.Hak Industrial Services is rewarded for their fully integrated offer of a very broad service portfolio.
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On Dutch soil
New offshore solutions
Amid all international projects, A.Hak Leidingbouw and its sister companies were also highly successful in the Dutch market.
Coating specialist Conline-Rhenania is building a new factory which will produce coating products for deep-sea utilization.
04 Preamble 06 2013 summarized review 12 Brief updates 16 High voltage connections 21 CSR and sustainability 24 Our human capital 28 Brief updates 29 A.Hak France off to a great start
30 33 34 35 38 40 41 42
Champions of collaboration A.Hak Telecom innovates Relocating a cooling water pipeline A.Hak Infranet successful Sustainable water supply The sun and Kaal Masten Digital city walls A.Hak worldwide
The A.Hak companies reflect on a successful 2013. While the 2012 revenue was more or less equal to that of 2011, the joint turnover in 2013 increased with no less than 111 million euro, while the EBIT was determined well above 4%. This growth was partially achieved in the Netherlands, but even more so in the international market. 2013 was also the first year in which the revenue threshold of 500 million euro was crossed. A great accomplishment and gift for the 50 year anniversary that was celebrated in 2013 and for everybody who contributed to achieving this milestone. TEXT  Richard van Santen
Sharp revenue increase with solid profit
PHOTOGRAPHY  Venguideche Vilvanadana
WELL POSITIONED IN A RECOVERING GLOBAL ECONOMY
D
KEY FIGURES FOR 2013
In thousands of euros
2013
2012
518,564 496,378
407,366 389,727
Operating profit/EBIT
22,186
17,639
Depreciations and amortizations
18,442
16,926
EBITDA
40,628
34,565
Operating revenues Operating costs
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GENERAL INFORMATION a.hak magazine
ue to the geographic dispersion of the various A.Hak companies and their projects, reports about the economy in our part of the world are not always normative for the results our companies can attain. After all, even though the crisis is global, it does not always strike with the same force in every part of the world. But of course A.Hak is certainly not immune to an economic downturn and the news still was somewhat gloomy in the past period. It took until November 2013 before the Statistics Netherlands agency could report a small economic growth, ending a period of fifteen consecutive months of contraction. Other influences were cause for concern as well. European governments continued to implement austerity measures, unemployment numbers rocketed sky-high and the European market saw a record number in company bankruptcies. Yet at the same time the first carefully optimistic reports in Europe, the recovering economy in the United States and the stabilization of various emerging economies slowly but surely put light at the end of the tunnel.
SUCCESS IN THE NETHERLANDS
Based on these backgrounds, a 27% revenue increase is remarkable to say the least. Especially when taken into account that some A.Hak companies that only operate in the Dutch market substantially contributed to the overall results. Plaisier, our infranet company located in the Province of North Holland, experienced the best year since its founding. A.Hak Infranet managed to establish positive results as a reward for its efforts to improve efficiency. In the current economy and an industry with limited margins, that is a formidable accomplishment. Although our manufacturing companies Kaal Masten and Mechanical Contracting Limburg still suffered from the economic turmoil, as in 2012, they
managed to obtain modest positive results. A.Hak Leidingbouw contributed greatly to the overall results, as it did in the previous years, with important projects for TAQA Energy, NAM, Gasunie and others. When this magazine was printed, the work for Gasunie on a 90 kilometer gas transport pipeline between the Dutch cities Beverwijk and Wijngaarden is still on its way, 60 kilometers of which is carried out by A.Hak Leidingbouw. INTERNATIONAL RESULTS
While reporting these great results, it must not remain unmentioned that the number of large pipeline projects in the Netherlands will sharply decrease and that A.Hak will increasingly focus on the international market in the coming years.
Based on the experience and projects we completed all across the globe, we can be confident about this step, yet it will require a broader state of mind. One of the companies that confidently entered this new phase is Conline-Rhenania, the A.Hak company that adds coatings to pipelines. As their job for Gasunie was already completed in 2013, they further developed their product portfolio and entered new markets, for instance by increasing the focus on the offshore industry. The overall results of Conline-Rhenania were exceptionally good, leading to quite a steep revenue growth in comparison to 2012. A.Hak Industrial Services (HIS), traditionally one of the internationally oriented A.Hak companies, picked the low and high hanging fruit of their excellent
A.Hak Drillcon managed to successfully complete various HDD drillings in Colombia, while other companies thought this challenge was too big.
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international reputation in which they invested over the years. Proof of this is found in the fact that they were selected as project manager in a Joint Industry Project led by Shell, the goal of which is to develop a new inspection robot for storage tanks. A.Hak Drillcon has also caught Shell’s attention, as they are now cooperating in research for extremely long drillings. Speaking of A.Hak Drillcon, 2013 was a very successful year for them as well. A lot of drillings took place in the Netherlands and they also carried out important international work. One great example is the project in Colombia, where they
The Middle East: home away from home completed four horizontal directional drillings. In France A.Hak Drillcon carried out the first Direct Pipe-drilling ever on French soil. A.Hak International flexed its muscle in Iraq, proving that quality work often leads to more work. Upon successfully completing an assignment for UNAOIL, both Shell and Weatherford also granted them great projects in the same region. OUTLOOK
The new Pipelines & Facilities division was officially launched on November 1st 2013. At the same time another path to integration was started last year, which will lead to the new Distribution & Networks division. A.Hak Infranet, A.Hak Electron, A.Hak Telecom and Plaisier will move forward together, striving towards more efficiency and methods to unburden their clients even more in the field of innovative distribution and communication networks. Our service and manufacturing companies will also join forces in a new division called Products & Services. Like their colleagues in the Pipelines & Facilities division, they will further internationalize their profile to match the longstanding international tenure obtained throughout the decades. Of course A.Hak also looks towards the sustainable future by developing and marketing new solutions in a fourth Renewable Energy division.
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GENERAL INFORMATION a.hak magazine
NEW DIVISIONS TAKING SHAPE
A.Hak is increasing its international focus, especially in the expertise of large pipeline projects. As a result of this strategy the new Pipelines & Facilities division launched in 2013. This new framework formed around the three companies most involved with constructing pipelines and the stations and services that go with it – A.Hak Leidingbouw, A.Hak International and A.Hak Industrie – ensures that the knowledge, skills and experience of the organization achieve maximum international results. Not only do these three companies have considerable individual capabilities, by joining forces they are able to obtain even better results for clients all across the globe. A.Hak International has of course worked in the international market for over three decades and considers the Middle East as its second domestic market. Its staff knows virtually everything there is to know about large project architecture under all possible circumstances. The knowledge A.Hak Leidingbouw offers in large pipeline projects has also proven invaluable. A.Hak Industrie employs many high-end experts in the field of industrial pipelines, overhead and underground stations and all accompanying equipment. By clustering this knowledge and experience into a single division, we further optimize and internationalize our expertise in this industry. Our clients are the winners of this further integration, as they are serviced by a fully integrated organization, no matter where they are located or active. By clustering the A.Hak activities based on demands from all over the world, we expect to further strengthen our international position, while the continued integration of the individual companies will lead to more synergy, innovation and efficiency. Various strategic company takeovers will support these objectives. Dewatering specialist Tjaden purchased its industry peer Aquaned in 2013, while A.Hak Industrial services acquired Linde Nitrogen Services. Lastly A.Hak took a 60% stake in the infranet company Elounda. In the 2012 annual overview we forecasted that 2013 would be a year in which we would regain the growth and expansion experienced in the years before. In terms of revenue, this goal has certainly been accomplished. If the global economy will continue to recover, we expect to carry on on this path towards growth in the coming years and keep increasing our results based on high-end projects for highly satisfied clients at virtually every possible location.
‘International expansion and consolidation ’
The added value of a family of companies such as A.Hak lies in the sum of the qualities of the individual companies. Especially in times of change, a strong position is gained if one is successful in joining forces in an efficient way. Our pipeline companies currently find themselves in such a change process. The large construction projects in the Netherlands are nearing completion and the center of gravity in the field of pipeline constructions is shifting towards the international market. As a Dutch company that possesses longstanding expertise in this field, the time has come to cluster these activities in such a way that international clients all across the globe can benefit optimally. This led to the creation of a new division: A.Hak Pipelines & Facilities. a.hak magazine
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Enno Freese
TEXT Richard van Santen PHOTOGRAPHY Maarten van der Voorde e.a.
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he A.Hak companies that focus on installing pipelines both under and above the ground are clustered in the new division Pipelines & Facilities since November 2013. The first half of that name speaks for itself, while ‘Facilities’ refers to the stations that are required to keep these pipeline infrastructures operating, examples of which are compressor, pump, gas receiving and measuring and regulating stations. A.Hak has a great reputation to live up to in the field of pipeline constructions. A.Hak Leidingbouw and A.Hak International have been household names in in the field of transport pipelines and the accompanying stations for decades. In 2012 another name was added to that, Reinhard Rorhbau is a well-known name in the German speaking part of Europe. Everything that has to do with pipelines in industrial environments is the expertise of A.Hak Industrie, a company that does not only install the aforementioned stations, but is also able to fully design and manufacture them as well.
PRIMARY OBJECTIVES
Enno Freese, a former member of the Board of Gasunie, has joined the ranks of A.Hak over a year ago to lead this new division. ‘For me that results into two primary objectives’, he explains, ‘integrating and internationalizing. Starting at that last phrase, one could say that A.Hak currently has two domestic markets in the field of constructing pipelines: the Netherlands/Germany and the Middle East (Saudi Arabia and Iraq). In addition to our extensive experience with the work itself, we have a lot of knowledge about local laws and regulations in these markets and we know our clients well. This expertise will be further expanded towards other parts of the world in the years to come.’ After a careful preparation that took several months, the new division officially started in November. This however, did not mean that Freese had to start from the ground up. The international history of A.Hak goes back well into the seventies and the foundation has only become stronger in
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the last couple of years. Projects were completed in Iraq, Albania, Germany and Austria and, certainly as important, in France, a market which is more elaborated on further on in this annual review. PRIVILEGED POSITION
‘We therefore find ourselves in the privileged position of being able to expand our international portfolio based on existing relations’, Freese continues. ‘Integration, bringing the companies together that form the division, will help us in that process. This is done by creating a Shared Service Center in which corporate processes such as Finance & Control, Calculation and HRM are organized more efficiently, but even more so by combining the knowledge and experience of the individual companies.’
The work in Iraq is a great example of the strategy of continuing work and further expansion. ‘Back in 2011, A.Hak International started the construction of two parallel pipelines for the export of crude oil from the Fao (Al Faw) Terminal near Basra in the southeastern tip of Iraq. Today, we find ourselves in this country for the fourth consecutive year. After completing the first two pipelines, aimed at relaunching the oil exports as a part of reconstruction efforts, we are now constructing a third pipeline, the Sealine project.’
For Weatherford, founded in Texas, A.Hak is also working in the cities of Hammar, Zubair and Rafidya on the Zubair Oil Field Development Project. Here, both 10" and 18" oil export pipelines are installed on these three locations. They form the connection between the production locations and the degassing stations, where oil and gas are separated, after which the gas is sold separately. In addition to these oil pipelines, various synthetic pipelines are also constructed that supply water to the fire extinguishing systems.
SHELL AND WEATHERFORD
‘ A.Hak has become a well-known name in Iraq’
The success of our operation in Iraq did not pass by unnoticed. Approximately 60 kilometers from Basra, the Majnoon oil field is located, which is one of the largest oil reserves in the world. This field is being developed and exploited by Shell, Petronas and the Iraqi Ministry of Oil. Shell contacted A.Hak International for an assignment that included the construction and connection of various block valve stations. Meanwhile, this project has entered its final stage by installing solar panels that generate energy for applications such as the operating and protection system and the construction of fiberglass cables which enable communication between the oil field, the control rooms and the stations.
ZUBAIR OIL FIELD
Jeroen Schreuder of A.Hak International describes the size of the Zubair Oil Field. ‘The field currently produces approximately 200,000 oil barrels per day, but billions of dollars are
invested to increase this output to over a million barrels per day. If we continue to deliver great work, we can anticipate on a lot more projects here. The oil that is exported from Zubair is transported to offshore oil tankers and passes through the two pipelines we constructed in Al Faw on this route. The Sealine project consists of the construction of a third pipeline. As oil is also exported from Majnoon via Zubair, A.Hak is visible in the oil fields in a large area with both people and equipment.’ Work in Iraq is certainly not easy. ‘From a technical point of view, operations are running smoothly. But we do have to pay a lot of attention to the safety of our people’, Schreuder elaborates. ‘The war in this area might be over, but there is still a lot of unrest between various ethnic and religious groups, including the tribal people who live in the swamps between Majnoon and Zubair. And the administrative requirements are also not entirely clear. We pass a checkpoint every mile, and while one officer simply stamps your papers and wishes you a great day, another one can be somewhat less friendly. The situation however, is certainly improving. We don’t only notice that the country itself it rapidly reconstructing, the fact that A.Hak is becoming a well-known name here and local people understand that we add value for them as well, certainly helps.’
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Frisian team performance
Specialized welding tasks
As the main contractor for client Liander, A.Hak Infranet region North-East completed two new 20kV medium voltage connections between two Frisian villages.
Last year, for its client Nuon Stadswarmte in Almere, A.Hak Infranet region West carried out two special welding procedures in a relatively small pit in order to connect various heat transfer pipelines with each other.
The greenhouses in this area need sufficient power to expand their operations in the near future. A second project objective was to provide for extra redundancy in the local power distribution network. ‘We started working on this project halfway 2013’, said Superintendent Jelke van Minnen on behalf of A.Hak Infranet region North-East. ‘A considerable segment of this connection was to be constructed on farmlands. The client therefore required us to provide extra attention to the execution and finishing of the project. Our operator Theo van der Heide doesn’t only speak the same language as the local farmers, but also knows a lot about the cultural work involved. Based on frequent consultations with the land owners involved in the execution, we managed to complete this project before the summer holiday and within the budget agreed upon.’ Van Minnen stresses the fact that a great cooperation between A.Hak Drillcon, A.Hak Electron and A.Hak Infranet region North-East was an important reason for successfully completing the new medium voltage connection. ‘Drillcon carried out over ten HDD’s on the trajectory, while Electron installed the 20kV connection. We coordinated the work.’ Client Liander made the conscious choice to install two 20kV connections to guarantee the availability of energy at all times. ‘Delivering a good product is as essential to Liander, as it is to A.Hak North-East’, says Atiqullah Abdul, who is the project manager for Liander. ‘By cooperating with A.Hak Drillcon and A.Hak Electron and the extensive attention in consulting the land owners, we managed to complete a great team performance.’
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KORTE BERICHTEN a.hak magazine
This pit contained four 18" and two 12" pipelines, all of them with stop valves, which were to be interconnected. ‘As this was one of the main heat transfer pipelines for the entire city of Almere, it was very important that we carried out our work correctly’, Ronnie Kerdijk clarifies. ‘To ensure this would succeed, we deployed two different welding procedures for the connecting welds. The ground layer of the weld was constructed using the fleet welding procedure. Here, we used special electrodes to weld these sizes of pipelines to each other. Then, for the fill layers, we welded in accordance with the TIG process.’ ‘The pit had a four by four meter dimension and a three meter depth. Add the various pipelines in the pit to that, and we didn’t have much room left to complete our work. We also had to clear the pipelines outside of the pit and place temporary seals to block the inflowing water from the pipelines outside of the pit. The combination of the various welding procedures, the limited space and the large diameters of the pipelines turned this project into a challenging one, which we completed to the full satisfaction of our client.’
En route towards new energy DIVISION RENEWABLE ENERGY
TEXT Adriaan van Hooijdonk and Richard van Santen PHOTOGRAPHY Maarten van der Voorde
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Having constructed pipelines and cable connections for more than fifty years, A.Hak has made important contributions to the energy infrastructure in various countries. Now, renewable energy sources such as solar power, wind power and biomass are becoming increasingly more important in comparison to fossil fuels. At the same time, the traditional model of centralized energy generation in large power plants is shifting more towards a model in which energy is generated and consumed more decentralized. A.Hak does not only keep track of these developments, but actively participates in them with its new Renewable Energy division. This division is led by Luck Westerbaan, responsible for the realization of The Green Village, an initiative of the world-renowned Delft Technical University.
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orrgas developed a new and successful technology for ‘torrefaction’, a process in which biomass, consisting of wood chips and agricultural residue, is converted at high temperatures and without oxygen into a substance much akin to charcoal. This treatment is essential for a stable gasification of biomass in a power plant. MCL is constructing a pilot station for just that process near the Dutch city of Alkmaar to gasify torrefied biomass. At the same time, the A.Hak location in Delfzijl in the Northeast of the Netherlands will be home to a large scale installation. Chemical companies can use the synthetic gas, also called ‘syngas’, produced by these stations as green fuel for an entire range of chemicals and fuels. Co-founder of Torrgas Robin Post van der Burg tells us: ‘By deploying this process, the sustainability of the chemical industry is increased yet another level.’
SUSTAINABLE ALTERNATIVE
‘MCL will build this pilot station, which is co-funded by TAQA and Gasunie New Energy, in the summer, so that we can commence our operations later this year’, Post van der Burg explains about the current status of the projects. ‘The syngas produced by this pilot station, is a mixture of carbon monoxide and hydrogen. The chemical industry can use this green fuel as a sustainable alternative for an entire chain of chemicals and fuels for which they currently use fossil fuels, such as oil, charcoal and natural gas. In a next step, the Delfzijl station will be upgraded to 20MW, which will allow us to produce SNG (Synthetic Natural Gas), or synthetic methane. By doing so, Torrgas will most probably become the first company in the world to close the entire chain from biomass to synthetic fuel.’ FUTURE PERSPECTIVE
Post van der Burg stresses that the annual ‘production’ of biomass, measured in terms of energy value, is larger than the total annual consumption of fossil fuels. ‘This means that a vast potential exists to produce chemicals and fuels from this biomass. We believe that this will happen in a decentralized way, leading to a much smaller scale than the current petrochemical plants. As soon as the combination of torrefaction and gasification has been fully established, there is a huge global industry ready to be supported. The international presence of A.Hak is of course of great value to expand our business in this expertise.’
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RENEWABLE ENERGY a.hak magazine
The Renewable Energy division enters into the challenging field of shifting towards a new economic energy model. By investing and participating in Torrgas and REDstack, companies that respectively convert biomass into ‘biocoal’ and generate energy by mixing salt and fresh water. While working on these tasks, the new division will intensively cooperate with A.Hak colleagues from various companies. MCL for example, is constructing a new factory for Torrgas, while the Pipelines & Facilities division is involved in completing a new testing factory for REDstack. The Renewable Energy division will also play an important role in positioning A.Hak in the changing energy industry. This goes for the expertise for new technologies that will demand new forms of infrastructure, but also for new and often more local parties that will start to form an increasing part of our client portfolio.
COOPERATION
The pipelines from and to the water were constructed by A.Hak Infranet region West. The pipelines are routed over the Afsluitdijk causeway through a portal placed over the road. A.Hak Industrie region Northeast designed and manufactured this construction (shown on the photo) in its own prefab workshop, after which they installed and connected the pipelines.
BLUE ENERGY
REDstack focuses on a different technology for the sustainable production of energy: reverse electrodialysis (RED). On every location where salt and fresh water meet, for instance where rivers flow into the sea, electricity can be generated. This is because salt water contains much more charged particles (ions) than fresh water. If both salt and fresh water are mixed through a membrane that only lets particles with a positive or negative charge pass, an electric field comes to exist which can be converted into electricity. Although the principle has been known to mankind for quite some time, the energy harvest was always too limited in order to become economically feasible for large scale production. REDstack, an innovative spin-off company from Wetsus, a research center for sustainable water technology, is now on the verge of changing that feasibility formula. Recently, a pilot station based on transporting ions between salt and fresh water was commissioned at the Afsluitdijk, a major causeway dividing the Wadden Sea with
its salt water, and the fresh water IJsselmeer. In this installation, one pipeline supplies salt water from the Wadden Sea, where it is brought into contact with the fresh water which is supplied by a second pipeline. This generates ‘Blue Energy’. The brackish water that comes to exist as a result,
Salt water + fresh water = Blue Energy is then transported back into the Wadden Sea with a return pipeline’, says Rik Siebers, the Director of Redstack. ‘This pilot station is used to test the functionality of various sorts of membranes in the ‘stacks’, the casings in which the membranes are placed.’
INCREASING THE SCALE
The REDstack Director stresses that the smaller casings with membranes will be tested extensively. ‘Once that phase is completed, we will upscale the process to larger units. The applications for this process are very broad, just think about wastewater treatment plants where purified waste water is discharged into the sea, or industrial processes in which both salt and fresh water flow processes are in place. Each of them allows for this technology to be implemented.’ Of course the success of this ‘Blue Energy’ hinges on the price the clients will have to pay for it, but Siebers is more than confident about the potential of this technology. ‘This form of energy production is sustainable, emits no greenhouse gases and does not depend on the availability of wind or sunlight. Water always flows, so I can predict exactly how much energy we are able to produce.’ A.Hak supports the developments of this sustainable power generation by participating in REDstack as a shareholder, together with Alliander and Magneto Special Anodes.
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HIGH VOLTAGE CONNECTIONS
Rotterdam area back on voltage
A.Hak Electron, expert in high voltage connections, worked on several projects throughout the Netherlands in 2013. From the polders to the rivers and from small towns to the centers of larger cities such as Leyden. In the Rotterdam area, both the underground and overhead specialists were deployed multiple times. TEXT  Adriaan van Hooijdonk PHOTOGRAPHY  Maarten van der Voorde
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onsiderable investments in advanced equipment and the knowledge and expertise of the staff are the primary reasons for clients to increasingly call upon A.Hak Electron for new projects. In 2013, this resulted in an increasing amount of assignments across the nation, often carried out in close cooperation with other A.Hak companies such as A.Hak Drillcon, A.Hak Telecom, Tjaden and A.Hak Infranet. The Rotterdam area was especially busy for A.Hak Electron, for example in the southern city district, which faced various brownouts as a result of network problems. Client Stedin therefore decided to install a number of new connections. In November 2013, work commenced on a new 25kV connection under the Waal harbor. These high voltage cables lead from a high voltage station to another station in two different trajectories, crossing a distance of approximately 4.5 kilometers. The A.Hak Electron staff also extended one cable to the other side of the harbor, so that it can function as a backup for the southern part of Rotterdam should a calamity occur in the primary systems. The second part of the assignment consisted of the construction of two 23kV circuits between the temporary 23kV station near the primary high voltage station, towards the future booster station located further in the city of Rotterdam. This booster station is required for the construction of the
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heating network in the southern district of Rotterdam, where residents and companies can use the heat surplus produced by the industry in the Botlek area. A.Hak Drillcon carried out four HDD’s. A very precise job, as the local ground already contains an abundance of cables and pipelines, while time pressure was high and the laws and regulations in the busy port area are complex and strictly enforced. The project however, was completed on time in February 2014. BROADENING THE A15 HIGHWAY
Elsewhere in the Rotterdam area, the future broadening of the A15 Highway requires various 10kV, 25kV and 150kV connections to be replaced. For this project, Stedin again is the responsible client. A.Hak Electron will replace the existing connections between a high voltage station, a pipeline corridor and yet another high voltage station. Not only will the company deliver the required cables, they will also care for the construction and work on the stations, including switch plans. Furthermore the company will carry out several high voltage tests, which includes deployment of their own Cable Inspection Vehicle that carries the latest in technology and equipment. A.Hak Drillcon also contributes in an essential way by carrying out various complex HDD’s up to a depth of 55 meters. This project is scheduled for completion in August 2014.
AND OVERHEAD AS WELL
For client TenneT, A.Hak Electron assembled high voltage conductors on the new 380 kV switching station in Hook of Holland. Furthermore the existing high voltage connection was rerouted and connected to this new switching station. This station is located near the water and at the famous Maeslant storm surge barrier, one of the largest moving structures on earth and certainly not the ideal environment to carry out these tasks in this time of the year. The tight schedule, the intensive train and freight traffic and the limited space between the dyke, railroad and secondary road did not delay the project execution, which was completed within the deadline. MAASVLAKTE 2
In order to increase transport capacity from and to the new container terminal at the Maasvlakte 2 in Rotterdam, a lot of work was carried out to adjust a road crossing and equip it with an overpass. The creation of this overpass would have resulted in a situation in which insufficient safe space would exist between the infrastructure underneath it and the high voltage connections. This is why the cables of the existing 380kV high voltage connection were tightened, which led to an increase in safety as it elevated the high voltage cables away from the traffic.
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A.Hak Industrial Services did not only considerably expand its European activities in 2013, but achieved the same growth outside these borders. For instance in Australia, where growing demand led to the opening of a new office in Adelaide. The strategy of offering integrated services based on individual service lines that cover a wide scope, is certainly a successful one. TEXT  Adriaan van Hooijdonk PHOTOGRAPHY  Bert Mateboer
WORLDWIDE EXPANSION
Multiple Services, Singular Solutions
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OIL & GAS a.hak magazine
HIS developed the decoking unit DPU-05.
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ith the slogan, ‘Multiple Services, Singular Solutions’, A.Hak Industrial Services (‘call us HIS’) offers a broad portfolio of industrial services for a large amount of leading clients in the oil, gas and petrochemical industry. The services cover a wide scope, from Inspection Services and Tank Services, to Pipeline Services and Industrial Services, while HIS stands out in the industry by integrating these individual tasks into a fully integrated offer. This enables clients to opt for a full solution that unburdens their entire company process: from cleaning to inspections and from design to dismantling. Over the past few years, HIS has grown considerably and an increasing amount of international clients are using the various services they offer. A wonderful example of such a cooperation is that the Australian Oil & Gas company Santos entered into a multi-annual contract with HIS to inspect a large number of pipelines. ‘This client contacted us in 2012 to carry out a pilot project’, the Operations Manager Pipeline Inspection Services, Niek Bruijnesteijn, explains. ‘With our inspection tool we mapped the wall thickness of various pipelines using ultrasonic sound. This project in the desert, far away from the civilized world, was carried out so well that we were allowed to significantly expand our work for Santos in Australia and recently even entered into a Master Service Agreement with them. This was one of the reasons for opening a new location in Adelaide.’ EXPANSION
Based on the growth and success of the organization, a lot of new staff was hired by A.Hak Industrial Services in a short time, while the global agents network was also expanded. HIS does not only strive for a continuous improvement of the
existing educational programs, but also invested in a specific training and communication structure with foreign colleagues and agents. The purpose of these initiatives is to meet the demands of its clients who are looking for a fully integrated service portfolio even better. ‘Furthermore, our global headquarters in the Netherlands recently hosted an event in which knowledge and experience were shared with a number of master students of the Avans+ institute. These people work at oil and gas companies and are attending a master study to become Pipeline Engineers, which of course makes our line of business very interesting for
them. We were certainly able to connect their theory to daily practical operations. This will be continued in 2014’, Bruijnesteijn explains. FURNACES
Upon the successful completion of a 2012 tank cleaning project in the U.K., carried out by Tank Services for the U.S. refinery Valero, the client also got to know Inspection Services and Industrial Services. ‘Both service lines have bundled their knowledge and experience in 2013 in order to inspect and clean a number of polluted furnaces. In this process, a special ‘decoking
PIPELINE SERVICES ‘NEW PROJECTS EVERYDAY’
‘A.Hak Pipeline Services managed to acquire new projects virtually every day in 2013’, the Service line Manager Pipeline Services, Eric Dekkers, states. ‘Both external clients as the A.Hak companies know they can rely on us for projects all across the globe. For A.Hak Leidingbouw, A.Hak International and A.Hak Industrie, we carried out a lot of hydrostatic testing, while we also worked for corporations such as Gasunie, Air Liquide, EVN, Bayer, Hertel and the NAM in various projects.’ ‘In the offshore industry we were highly involved in detecting and solving a weak point in a pipeline and for client Allseas we carried out several high-pressure tests for a large number of subsea valves in Rotterdam. One of the most outstanding projects was completed for a Dutch manufacturer of high-end synthetic pipelines. These pipelines, which are installed at great depths in the sea, were tested at 800 bars. This turned it into a unique project, as high pressures of this magnitude are very rare in the industry.’ ‘Furthermore we notice an increase in the amount of clients relying on our expertise in the field of bolting’, Dekkers concludes. ‘We now have special hydraulic high pressure tools available that enable us to create extremely heavy connections.’
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TANK SERVICES ‘INTERNATIONAL DEMAND’
Over the past four years, A.Hak Industrial Services has made considerable investments in Research and Development in order to be able to offer the growing client portfolio a number of innovative tank services. A great example is the 3D Sludge Profiler, which maps the sludge content of a tank using acoustic signals, after which powerful spray cannons desludge the tank. ‘Last year we used this technology to profile and clean three paraffin tanks for Valero in the U.K. This now led to a two year Profiling contract’, says Manager Tank Services Berry Krijbolder. ‘And together with the Brazilian oil corporation Petrobras, we entered into a similar contract to regularly map the pollution in various storage tanks of a refinery near São Paolo.’
unit’ was deployed which was developed inside the own organization and is the culmination of years of knowledge and experience’ says Manager Furnace Inspection Services, Hans Overdijkink. ‘Furthermore, Valero’s Plant Manager was so impressed by this technology that he established a contact with his colleagues in the United States, where Valero operates various refineries. We might just become able to expand our work for Valero considerably in their domestic market as well.’
on heart patients. A flexible pig made of polyurethane with sharp chisels wriggles itself through the contaminated pipelines and scrapes away
their furnace while we are busy with our work. As an extra service, we are also able to carry out an ultrasonic inspection once all maintenance has been completed.’ PIPELINE INTEGRITY
HAK DECOKING TECHNOLOGY
‘ Expansion of the global network’
In the meantime, various other renowned clients such as Shell and Esso have also used the new ‘HAK decoking technology’ (HDT), which was developed by A.Hak Industrial Services itself. Harry Schepers, Business Director Industrial Services clarifies, ‘This specially developed unit (named DPU-05) is the result of decades of knowledge and experience.’ Crude oil is often contaminated with heavy metals, carbons and other substances. As a result, a rock hard layer accrues on the inside of the pipelines which is very hard to remove.’ Schepers continues, ‘The way in which this ‘decoking unit’ works can be compared with an angioplasty performed
the accretion on the inside. The machine has two engines and two water pumps, both of which circulate 480 m3 of water through the pipelines each hour. As it is a closed loop system, the polluted water is collected separately and disposed of. At the same time, we can follow the pig on a screen so that the operators know exactly where any accretion is left within the pipelines. Based on this information the client can readjust the burners in the furnace or modify elements of the process. Another benefit of this method is that our clients can continue other maintenance on
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By acquiring the company DMC-1, A.Hak Industrial Services has managed to further expand its service portfolio in the field of pipeline integrity. Using this so called Pipeline Integrity Management System (PIMS), HIS is able to stay involved with a pipeline during its entire lifecycle and provide excellent service to its clients. The system interconnects data about maintenance, inspections and repairs, which leads to a great information database that is used to monitor and extend the lifecycle. ‘The system connects a large spectrum of services, from the very first construction by A.Hak Leiding bouw up to the decommissioning by A.Hak Pipeline Services and every step in between’, Bruijnesteijn clarifies. ‘Since the integrity of the pipeline is always a priority between those phases, this new expansion of our portfolio certainly adds value to our Inspection Services, where sharing the knowledge with clients is beneficial to both parties.’
we CONTENTS 22 Materiality determination The model used by A.Hak to determine the themes receiving our undivided attention as part of our CSR program, is called materiality determination.
23 Top 3 The three primary themes in the field of CSR and Sustainability are: health & safety, energy & transport and training & education.
24 Our people Some core information about human resources.
Defining what’s important Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Sustainability can be defined in many ways. If clear decisions are not made, the risk comes to exist that focus lies on themes with lower priorities. To prevent this from happening, A.Hak developed its own ‘materiality determination’. The materiality determination is a method in which the broad CSR spectrum is filtered into a comprehensible priority set that receives undivided focus. Using the materiality determination, a top 3 of primary objectives was determined, being: health & safety, energy & transport and education & training. The following pages explain how this model works, while also displaying the core number of each of these three topics, including the total educational budget. Of course we strive to zero accidents when it comes to safety, yet at the same time we realize that this number is unattainable for now. Unfortunately, over the past few years we even noticed an increasing trend in the number of accidents. In 2013 we were able to reverse this trend. In the energy & transport priority, one of the key performance indicators is our carbon footprint. In 2013, A.Hak formulated the ambition to be entirely CO2-neutral by the year 2020. As a first benchmark, the current situation of all our Dutch companies was extensively mapped.
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CSR & SUSTAINABILITY 22
MATERIALITY DETERMINATION
CSR a.hak magazine
CSR PERFORMANCE LADDER
RELEVANCE
Does the indicator apply to our work or the A.Hak organization?
no
yes
SIGNIFICANCE
Is the indicator important to the vision of the stakeholders?
no
Are regulations for this indicator currently being violated or does a threat exist that this will occur?
no
Is the indicator of importance based on the vision of the A.Hak board?
no
yes
NON-RELEVANT OR SIGNIFICANT INDICATORS
RELEVANCE OR SIGNIFICANT INDICATORS
PRIORITY BASED EXECUTION
Is the conclusion still valid after one year?
MONITORING AND REPORTING OF INDICATORS CARRIED OUT
yes
no
ACCIDENT FREQUENCY
TRAINING & EDUCATION
Number of accidents per 1,000,000 hours worked Training budget
2.0
1.6
4.0
4.4
3.6
09
10 20
11 20
12 20
13 20
20
2013 On average
The upward trend of the past years has been reversed. We continue to focus on bringing our average corporate results on the levels of the A.Hak companies that are active in the oil & gas industry, which generally score 2.0 or lower.
1,207 EURO
CARBON FOOTPRINT
per permanent staff member
OFFICE PAPER
0.0934%
ENERGY
7.81%
Total
FREIGHT TRANSPORT
2,802,654
4.24% FUELS
13.1%
EURO
BUSINESS TRAVEL
26.5%
WATER & WASTE WATER
0.000430%
OCNED TRAINING CENTER
EMISSIONS
0.0712% CO2
MOBILE EQUIPMENT
48.1%
Several A.Hak companies have internal training centers. The welding school in one of the new warehouses at the Tricht headquarters is a great example of that. As is the A.Hak Industrial Services training center with test loops, also located in Tricht. The development possibilities were further expanded in 2013. A.Hak acquired a 60% stake in Elounda, which also meant becoming the partial owner of the OCNED Training Center located in Dronten. OCNED delivers courses for infrastructure technology which include BEI, VIAG and VEWA. OCNED has its own location for practical courses that offers over 500 m2 of practice space.
TOTAL: 42,549 TONS
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OUR PEOPLE
PERMANENT STAFF MEMBERS
2500
YEARS
2,065
2,000
ANNIVERSARY FESTIVITIES
In 1963, A.Hak Pijpleidingen NV was the firm that laid the foundations of what A.Hak has become today. Our 50th anniversary was the reason for large scaled festivities on September 14th 2013 in the Walibi Holland amusement park. All our staff members and their families were invited, while a large number of our veterans also joined the festivities. Together, over 4,000 people enjoyed a marvelous day together. Wearing their special A.Hak anniversary hats they took over the amusement park.
1,500
2,217
2,322
1,688 1,708
1,515
1,000
500
0 10 20
09
08
20
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HISTORIC REVIEW SICK LEAVES
11 20
12 20
13 20
ANNIVERSARIES
Once people start working for A.Hak, they often stay with us for a long time. On November 16th 2013 we honored no less than 23 colleagues who celebrated an outstanding anniversary.
8% 7% 6% 5%
6 colleagues
17 colleagues
4% 3%
40
2%
YEARS
1%
98 19
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25 YEARS
While the A.Hak companies in the Pipelines & Facilities division mainly focus on the international market as part of their long-term strategy, A.Hak Leidingbouw carried out some fascinating projects on Dutch soil in 2013. Or put more precisely, in Dutch soil. Transport pipelines were installed from and to the underground gas storage facilities in Bergermeer and Norg. And of course 60 of the total 90 kilometers of gas pipelines which Gasunie required between Beverwijk and Wijngaarden. The latter project will continue to be worked on for some time, while the first two have entered the last phase of completion in the previous year.
LARGE PIPELINE PROJECTS
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TEXT Richard van Santen PHOTOGRAPHY Maarten van der Voorde
Norgron (aQuaintance) Client Nederlandse Aardolie Maatschappij (NAM) Main contractor aQuaintance (syndicate in which A.Hak Leidingbouw, Cofely and Tebodin participate) Description Constructing a transport pipeline between Groningen gas reserves and Norg gas storage facility Project duration 2013 – 2014 Pipeline specifications Total length: 30 km Diameter: 48" Material: steel SPECIAL FEATURES
nsures sufficient transport capacity to E process peak demands Successful appliance of ‘construction driven engineering’ Staff receives safety instructions in a special ‘safety room’ aQuaintance cooperates with A.Hak Drillcon (drillings) and Tjaden (dewatering)
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GAS a.hak magazine
MEDIA SPECTACLE
As part of the pipeline between Beverwijk and Wijngaarden, A.Hak Drillcon carried out a drilling under the Polderbaan, one of the runways of Schiphol International Airport. Page 26 and 27 depict this area on a quiet morning. While this took place, it was accompanied by a true media spectacle which led to many newspaper articles and television broadcasts. Images of this event can be found on www.a-hakpark.nl/polderbaan.
Bergermeer Gas Storage Client TAQA Energy Main contractor A.Hak Leidingbouw Description Constructing transport pipelines from and to Bergermeer gas storage facility Project duration 2011 - 2013 Pipeline specifications Total length: 27 km Diameter: 3" up to 42" Material: steel SPECIAL FEATURES
argest underground gas storage facility L in Western Europe Cooperation with A.Hak Drillcon for drillings under nature reserve, railway tracks, flood defenses and highways Assisted by A.Hak Infranet (insulation) and A.Hak Telecom (fiberglass connections) Tjaden injected the ground water, which contains sulfur dioxide and chloride, back into the ground in a responsible way
Beverwijk – Benthuizen
Client Gasunie Main contractor A.Hak Leidingbouw Description Construction of a transport pipeline between Beverwijk and Benthuizen Project duration 2012 – 2014 Pipeline specifications Total length: 60 km Diameter: 48" Material: steel
SPECIAL FEATURES
ighly challenging soil conditions H From densely populated areas to areas with very limited infrastructure A large number of spectacular drillings, including one under the Schiphol International Airport ‘Polder’ runway, the North Sea Canal and the Highway A4 Cooperation with A.Hak Drillcon (drillings) and Tjaden (dewatering)
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MCL builds heat exchangers
Combined contracts Sustainable heating in Rotterdam area pipeline
In 2013, MCL delivered 18 heat exchangers to Gasunie as part of a framework agreement. This contract certainly does not mean that the order flow is now automated, as each assignment requires tendering in a field with other selected partners. Based on this context, the new 2014 order for yet another 28 heat exchangers is a great accomplishment.
A.Hak Infranet did well in the larger Rotterdam area by entering into several new long-term contracts with both Structin and water company Evides.
Last year, MCL entered into a framework agreement with Gasunie for the delivery of a large amount of heat exchangers. These ‘shell & tube exchangers’ heat the gas before pressure reduction takes place in the gas receiving stations, a process required before transferring the gas to the local or regional infrastructure. Within this framework agreement, Gasunie issues three mini-tenders to various suppliers for each assignment. ‘This means that we have to offer the best quality and best price for every project in order to secure our business. And we managed to do just that once again for this project’, MCL’s Sales Manager, Jean Vollebergh, says. This new assignment is scheduled for a phased delivery between early May 2014 and the end of that month. In terms of revenue, the total assignment is almost 50% larger than the first assignment for 18 heat exchangers.
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The work in the new contract with Structin consists of the combined construction of main pipelines and connecting newly built homes to the water, gas, energy and CAI infrastructures. The company encounters a large number of participating clients: Stedin manages the energy network, Evides the water supply, UPC Nederland operates television and CAI and the CIF company manages fiberglass connections. These companies united in the Structin conglomerate, with whom this new contract has a maximum duration, including extensions, up to December 31st 2019. With water company Evides, a framework agreement was signed to construct the main pipelines and water connections. Together with other contractors in the area, consignment and emergency services are operated to ensure that any malfunctions in the current infrastructure for transport, distribution and connection systems are solved quickly and correctly. In the tender process, Evides made a conscious choice to engage into long-term relations that allow for chain optimization. If all contract extensions are exerted, this contract will continue until December 31st 2023.
A.Hak Infranet region West installed a new heat transfer pipeline for Purmerend District Heating. This pipeline has a 20" diameter, which is not a regular size for district heating projects. ‘Although this diameter is quite exceptional, it’s only logical once you get to know the context’, superintendent Ron Glas explains. ‘This main transport pipeline will deliver 80 percent of the heating needs of the city. The heat is generated in a biomass plant. As a result, Purmerend District Heating decreased its annual CO2 emissions with 50,000 tons, the equivalent of 16,000 cars.’ A.Hak Infranet region West has been carrying out projects for Purmerend District Heating for decades. ‘We fully unburden our client by offering design, installation and maintenance tasks, but also by managing any calamities or malfunctions’, Glas clarifies. Henri Elshout, the maintenance coordinator for Purmerend District Heating, says: ‘We are very happy with the constructive form of cooperation we have with A.Hak. The high level of quality in which they contribute towards these technical matters is of great help, but the excellent transparency and communication are also highly important to us. After all, it’s not all about technology, but first and foremost about our clients and people that are otherwise directly involved with our organization. Based on this cooperation, we are looking forward to future challenges.’
A.Hak France a new player ‘A.Hak France reflects upon a great and fruitful year. We’ve already completed the first large project, but also carried out various smaller projects. Furthermore, we are currently engaging with various potential clients from different industries who are glad that the French market is being energized by a new party’, says Director Peter Kerkhoff. In 2013, one of A.Hak’s long-cherished objectives became reality when the new office of A.Hak France was opened in Toulouse. In the coming years, significant investments will take place in the pipeline infrastructures of large corporations such as GRTgaz and TIGF. ‘In the past year we proved that we complete large and small projects as part of our daily business. The first project we acquired was a project for TIGF. Close to Agen, adjacent to the Garonne river towards Bordeaux, we dismantled and reconstructed various gas distribution systems.’ Almost directly after that, A.Hak France received a request from GRTgaz to construct a 20" pipeline with a length of more than 900 meters from a gas distribution station to an EDF power plant. ‘The Bouchain project has now been completed to the full satisfaction of the client. Meanwhile, we were also granted a smaller project by TIGF in which we lowered an existing gas pipeline over a length of hundred meters, within two weeks’, says Kerkhoff. ‘Our daily operations currently revolve around the gas industry, but energy corporations such as ERT are also becoming increasingly more interested in our knowledge and expertise. We are receiving more requests to tender in projects containing drillings, for which we apply together with A.Hak Drillcon. We are currently in the process of creating an offer for Total in the Nantes area to construct a highly insulated heat pipeline for oil transport between two pontoons.’ GREEN FLAG
The second year of A.Hak France’s operations also started out quite well. The ‘Pavillon Vert’, or green flag, was lifted on a new project site for GRTgaz after successfully completing a very strict environmental audit. ‘This audit did not only check whether all documents were in place, but our client also fully checked whether our promises in the environmental and local job creation aspects were carried out as agreed upon. We passed that test with flying colors.’
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A.HAK INDUSTRIE
Champions of collaboration TEXT Adriaan van Hooijdonk and Senid Salihovic PHOTOGRAPHY Maarten van der Voorde
In 2013, A.Hak Industrie Born participated in various consortia. One was created especially for the construction of underground pipelines for OCI Nitrogen, while the organization also played an important part in the Safety Excellence Cooperation (SEC), a platform initiated by EdeA to increase safety awareness. Elsewhere, A.Hak Industrie Botlek teamed up with Stork Technical Services in the Vopak MiDEx project.
F
ertilizer manufacturer OCI Nitrogen required the installation of three pipelines from the Chemelot Business Park to a port nearby. In order to create a successful bid for the project, various companies entered into a consortium at the end of 2012. A.Hak Industrie Born, Spie Zuidoost, Yokogawa and Van den Biggelaar Waterbouw are now well on their way with the installation of the 8" pipelines over a total length of 7.5 kilometers. Manager Operations Erik Knarren from A.Hak Industrie Born expects that the consortium will be able to complete the pipelines in the summer of 2014. COLLABORATION
Other A.Hak companies will play an important role in this project as well. ‘A.Hak Drillcon made the designs for the drillings and carried out twelve pilot-operated auger drillings on the trajectory and three auger drillings under the railroad between the Chemelot Business Park and the port nearby.’ A.Hak Telecom’s support was called in for cable jetting the fiberglass connections, so that the Monitoring & Control room and the management and measuring systems could benefit from optimal connectivity. Conline-Rhenania completes the external coating of the pipelines, while A.Hak Leidingbouw provides staff for the project team and the equipment for the cold bending of the pipelines. A.Hak Industrial Services will complete all required tests, while MCL constructs and delivers various machines, barrels, pig launchers and receivers for consortium partner Spie. SAFETY
Learning from one another and continuously focusing on the safety record are key to the Safety Excellence Cooperation (SEC), a safety platform launched by EdeA (a joint venture between DSM and Essent). In this platform, seven parties cooperate to bring the safety standard at the Chemelot Business Park to an even higher level. In addi-
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tion to EdeA and A.Hak Industrie Born, these corporations are Stork, Cofely, Hertel, VSH and Z-Safety Services. In the past year, investments were made in an aluminum trench shoring system to prevent the soil from collapsing while work is carried out in it. Another example of investing in safety is the sucker and vacuum tanker that has been permanently present on the site since 2012. Knarren says, ‘It’s obviously more expensive, but it’s a whole lot safer than digging’. VOPAK MIDEX PROJECT
When it comes to safety, A.Hak Industrie Botlek also certainly knows the drill. In the summer edition of this magazine we already reported how work was carried out at the BP Refinery Rotter-
‘ With our partners we continue to focus on the safety record’ dam at the Maasvlakte to make the ‘arteries’ of this corporation ready for inspection: the pipelines transporting crude oil from the Maasvlakte Oil Terminal (MOT) to the refinery. A.Hak Industrie
Botlek was also involved in the so called Vopak MiDEx project which has the objective of increasing the storage capacity of the Vopak Terminal Europort. This project is split into two smaller segments. The Greenfield part consists of all work carried out above the ground such as tanks and pump platforms, while the Brownfield part consists of everything that takes place under the ground. This last part primarily includes installing all required handling pipelines to the terminal (on-plot) and Neckar Port (off-plot).
ing storage tanks from the Europort terminal to the handling station in the Neckar Port. The four 16" pipelines, each measuring 1,400 meters, ensure that inland barges fill up on kerosene quickly and efficiently. This project also includes 4 HDD’s. In order to make sure that these are carried out according to specification, A.Hak Industrie closely cooperates with A.Hak Drillcon. The craftsmanship and expertise of these two A.Hak companies ensure that all work is carried out as scheduled and the project can be completed in June 2014.
TOGETHER WITH A.HAK DRILLCON
As a partner of Stork Technical Services, A.Hak Industrie Botlek also contributes to the MiDEx Brownfield project. The work consists of connect-
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Expanding in the northern border region in Veendam
Conline-Rhenania builds towards the future
After acquiring the equipment and real estate of Nacap in 2012, A.Hak obtained access to a location in Veendam in the border region of the Netherlands and Germany. It is home to A.Hak Industrie region Northeast, as well as an IT department and logistic center.
Within A.Hak, Conline-Rhenania focuses on an essential link for pipeline activities: adding a protective coating to pipelines of virtually all materials and diameters. 2013 proved to be a highly successful year, especially in the offshore industry.
A.Hak Industrie region Northeast moved to the Veendam location in 2013. The Portals and Steel Constructions Departments with their own prefab workplace, which were already located there when Nacap still existed, are now fully integrated within this A.Hak company. This led to some impressive results, one of them being the design, construction and installation of a portal construction over the Afsluitdijk causeway that carries various pipelines transporting water from and to the pilot station of Redstack.
In the past five years, Conline-Rhenania made considerable investments to prove itself in the offshore industry. ‘Based on the large amount of qualifications we made this year, as well as the large number of projects in the offshore industry, we proved that Conline-Rhenania has become an established company in this industry’, Cees van Overloop explains. ‘Especially in the past years, led by Jan Roelofs of whom I took over the leadership this year, we expanded our factories to become the most modern coating production line of Europe.’
At the same time, A.Hak Industrie region Northeast also plays an important role as a contractor for inspections, civil engineering and pipeline tasks for virtually all underground pipelines of the NAM corporation. This contract, in which A.Hak Industrial Services is also a partner, was recently prolonged for another two years. Furthermore, the company segment located in Veendam recently became a Kenteq certified apprenticeship company. The Veendam location is also home to an A.Hak IT department and a new logistics center which primarily hosts large equipment.
The pipelines coated by Conline-Rhenania are now found all across the globe. And it is remarkable that 2013 proved to be such a great year. In the domestic Dutch market, it became noticeable that the amount of projects – especially those for Gasunie on which other A.Hak companies are still working – are decreasing. By tapping into other markets in time, Conline-Rhenania managed to compensate for this effect very well. This strategy is continued in the coming years, as the Moerdijk factory is home to a new production location since early 2014, where deliveries will include coating products for deep-sea utilization.
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A.HAK TELECOM
High tech service provider Telecommunications providers have widened their scope beyond telephony a long time ago. A.Hak Telecom has operated as a high tech service provider for quite some time as well, and 2013 proved to be a year of innovation.
A.Hak Telecom provides for virtually all imaginable networks for data and communications traffic, but primarily focuses on delivering high tech services. ‘Together with Kaal Masten, SmarterVision and Trigion we developed the innovative All-in-View camera system’, says Raymond Buitenhuis, responsible for service and product innovation. ‘It’s a revolutionary concept that combines intelligent video-data management with a camera that covers 360 degrees. The project is the result of an intensive cooperation with Kaal Masten, developing the multifunctional masts, SmarterVision (formerly known as DySI Analytics), developing the hardware for the system, and security company Trigion that christened the first operational system in 2013 at the Vijfsluizen Business Park in Schiedam near Rotterdam. A.Hak Telecom constructed a fiberglass network especially for this occasion, which enables the All-in-View system to transfer large amounts of data.’ CROWD CONTROL
In addition to conventional security, this system is also a perfect match for temporary project locations and events. ‘Crowd control is a top priority for organizations hosting events. The All-inView system functions as the eyes of the organization and
enables efficient and fast deployment of police and security officers in large crowds.’ A.Hak Telecom is also involved in the engineering, installation, service and maintenance of Wi-Fi hotspots and developed the InfraView system that allows for another efficiency boost in the engineering and installation of fiberglass pipelines. The A.Hak company was involved at the LOFAR telescope in the Netherlands, constructing and placing the low frequency antennas, while satellite internet systems are also part of their innovative portfolio. SENSOR CITY
Sensor City is yet another marble of innovation. In the Dutch city of Assen, experiments are currently underway for a superfast network for data traffic, connected to approximately 200 measuring points spread throughout the city. These sensors report actual information that can be used for countless purposes in the future. Other applications in the field of mobility are currently also tested. The live data collected by the sensors, allows travelers to obtain a highly personalized and up-to-date travel advice. A.Hak Telecom is one of the partners enabling the development and construction of this network. After completing this project early in 2014, a new contract was established for maintenance and management.
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‘A masterpiece of technical engineering’ To enable the fortification of the coastline, the High Flux Reactor cooling water pipeline was to be rerouted. In a close cooperation with engineering firm Lievense and A.Hak Infranet region West, A.Hak Drillcon successfully completed this job during a scheduled maintenance shutdown of the nuclear reactor.
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The High Flux Reactor delivers radioactive isotopes used in hospitals to battle diseases such as cancer. Each day, over 24,000 patients all over the world are treated with isotopes originating from Petten. The reactor’s cooling water system discharge flows out onto the beach. This beach however, was to be elevated three meters, while being extended with 700 meters, causing the water discharge to become covered with sand.
On the beach, at the entrance point of the drilling, a dam wall construction was installed and a 150 tons drilling rig set up. From thereon, A.Hak Drillcon drilled all the way to the exit point out on the open sea. Using a 60 tons drilling rig on that location, installed on a jack-up pontoon, the new pipeline was pulled into the newly created tunnel. While all this work was carried out, the beach was still open for tourists. The work terrain was smartly designed and by building a temporary bridge over it, people could still safely cross the perimeter. Special sound barriers were also installed, ensuring that both people and the environment were not disturbed by too much noise. The drilling mud did not end up in the sea, but was recycled on the shore, after which A.Hak Infranet region West completed the project by connecting the new pipeline.
REDUCING NUISANCE
DEADLINE MET
A.Hak Drillcon and three competitors were approached to find the best solution for the task at hand. The plan of the A.Hak company firmly stood out from the other proposals, as it did not only provide a great technical solution, but also focused on limiting environmental nuisance to an absolute minimum. A special 1,000 meter synthetic pipeline was manufactured in Norway and shipped to its destination over sea in its entirety. This meant the beach did not have to accommodate welding tasks and both nature and wildlife in the dune area were spared this nuisance.
Although severe weather conditions threatened to delay the project, the critical deadline was still met after all by a good and intense cooperation between all project partners. These partners included NRG, the Nuclear Research and consultancy Group, who spoke of ‘a masterpiece of technical engineering’. A.Hak Drillcon also regards this project to be a great showcase for similar projects in the oil and gas industry, which often routes pipelines from and to the sea.
WATER a.hak magazine
REPAIRING A RUPTURED WATER PIPELINE
‘Improvising every day ’ In order to repair a ruptured water pipeline between mainland Den Helder and the island of Texel, A.Hak Infranet region West cooperated with the company ‘De Vries en van de Wiel’ in the Marsdiep deep tiderace to get this emergency job done. ‘And it was a difficult one, especially for the divers who had to complete parts of this project under water. The strong currents during every change of the tides demanded a great deal of improvisation each and every day’, said Dick Blom, Project Leader A.Hak Infranet region West.
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TEXT Adriaan van Hooijdonk
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t the end of June 2013, one of the two main water pipelines from Den Helder to Texel started leaking at a depth of 22 meters. The enormous force of the tides caused more than 160 meters of the water pipeline to grind over the seabed. As a result of the large internal pressure, the pipeline fully ruptured. Due to a heat wave that hit at the same time, and the busy tourist season on the island, water company PWN had to deliver extra drinking water to the island with tank trucks for two days. PWN also proactively used its website to share water-saving tips while posters and flyers asked the public to use water in a sensible and frugal way until repairs were completed.
DIVING TEAM
‘At the end of July, I set out onto the sea with a diving team to inspect the pipeline’, Dick Blom explains. ‘We then quickly found out that the pipeline was still attached on the Texel side, but was fully ruptured on the Den Helder side. Over 160 meters of pipeline was floating on the water, endangering recreational boats as well. Rijks waterstaat, the Dutch governmental organization managing water and roads conditions, then immediately placed buoys to prevent accidents and make sure that snoopers would stay away from our work area.’ In a next step, Blom and his staff sawed of the pipeline, disposed of the materials and sealed the remaining pipeline segments with inflatable air bags. ‘Once that was done, we brought in new materials to the NIOZ-harbor. We also designed a special construction to be able to add enough ballast to the pipeline so that it would safely sink to the bottom of the sea. For that purpose, old anchor chains, each weighing 60 kilograms, were placed on every meter of the pipeline. Furthermore we applied rubber performer hoses on both sides of the pipelines to create more flexibility
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when connecting the segments to each other while underwater. As an extra support, we also vertically placed six tubular piles with a 36 meter length in the bottom of the sea which stuck out above the waterline.’
less than eight ships were in the water to complete various tasks. The new pipeline segments were shipped to the location from the NIOZ- harbor, which were sunk during neap tide and immediately reinforced with stones.
CHALLENGING CONDITIONS
IMPROVISING
The original idea was to interconnect the pipeline segments while they were still above the water, but upon removing the old pipeline from the deep tide-race, Blom was quickly confronted with the extremely heavy currents during every change of the tides. ‘This led us to the conclusion that connecting the pipelines above the water was a no-go. We proceeded to hire two diving teams with each five men to carry out this job under water’, Blom says. During the climax of this challenging project, no
‘This project used a large floating dock with a 200 tons crane, a ship with an Airmove installation and a crane, two multi ships and a patrol boat to make sure no recreational boats entered the vicinity. Repairing the eastern submerged pipeline on the Texel side took us over three days, but at the end we were successful. The team of A.Hak Infranet region West had to combine all its knowledge and cooperate intensively, and still we had to improvise to complete this project quickly and correctly.’
In the spring of 2014, the new transport pipeline for water company ‘Waterleidingmaatschappij Drenthe’ (WMD) will transport drinking water between two large production stations in the Netherlands. By connecting these locations, the delivery of clean drinking water in the Province of Drenthe will be secured for the coming decades. Based on a tender with multiple bidders, A.Hak Infranet Region Northeast was selected to carry out this project.
‘I Reparing the water pipeline to the island of Texel proved to be a challenging job.
n October 2013, we started preparing for this project. The trajectory was chartered and various meetings were scheduled with local municipalities, the client, archeologists and third parties’, so clarifies the Superintendent at A.Hak Infranet, Wybo Hofstra. Constructing this new pipeline does not only guarantee the availability of clean drinking water for the central region of the Province of Drenthe. It also allows for mixing the soft water of the production station in Assen with the relatively hard water from the station in Beilen. This ensures that the service area will receive softer water in the near future. To comply with the Habitats Directive (Council Directive 92/43/EC) and the Valletta Treaty, an intensive ecological and archeological research was carried out before the project started. The Habitats Directive was implemented in order to protect wild fauna and flora during large construction projects. The purpose of the Valletta Treaty is to protect cultural heritage, such as archeological remains, found underground. That is why an archeologist carefully supervised the entire project to ensure that no archeological remains were damaged.
DRILLINGS
Multiple A.Hak companies cooperated to complete this project. A.Hak Drillcon started its work in November, by carrying out thirteen HDD’s with a total length of 3.6 kilometers. ‘After that, we constructed 18 kilometers of the water pipeline’, Hofstra tells. ‘The remaining two kilometers were
installed by the staff of our client. In this process, we also had to comply with laws and regulations aimed at preventing ruptures of the grassland. These rules are designed to limit nitrogen leaching which can cause damage to the roots of the grass. It also meant that we could not start working on several segments of the trajectory before February 1st.’
‘ Plenty of (soft) water for the Province of Drenthe’ ‘Another nice challenge was loading the 24 meter pipes onto the pipeline trucks and transporting them from the public road to the working location over a winding trail. The relatively warm winter in Europe was quite helpful and based on an excellent cooperation between all project partners, we managed to complete the project within its deadline. We are currently working on the finishing touch of the pipeline trajectory, so that the environment is entirely cleaned and our work becomes invisible.’
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Sustainable water supply TJADEN CONSTRUCTS TWO WELLS
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Last year, Tjaden completed a sustainable water supply for Spaarnelanden N.V., located in the Dutch city of Haarlem. ‘One of the objectives accomplished by constructing these water supply systems is that the availability of water for the salt mixing station is guaranteed for the coming years. The organization no longer has to use drinking water for this water demand’, states Ruud Doorlandt, business unit manager at Tjaden. TEXT Adriaan van Hooijdonk PHOTOGRAPHY Maarten van der Voorde
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ince 2005, the management and maintenance tasks for the public space have been outsourced by the Municipality of Haarlem to Spaarnelanden N.V. This contract includes all tasks regarding the sewer system, bridges, the car fleet, bike and car parks, the public road, public green spaces and waste collection and processing. Corporate Social Responsibility is important to this enterprise, and thanks to a green loan obtained from the ASN Green Project Fund, a sustainable office building could be built which includes solar panels, ground source heat pumps and a special form of insulation. Mr. Dorlandt continues his explanation on behalf of Tjaden. ‘Last year we were asked if we could deliver a sustainable water supply system for the salt mixing station’ he said. ‘In that respect we weren’t allowed to extract any water from the soil layer of the existing GHSP sources. Another influence was the fact that the ground water in the area was possibly contaminated. That meant that our first step was to complete extensive research to pinpoint the ideal depth to which we could drill to extract fresh water that could be used as springs for this new system.’
PERMIT PROCESS
Spaarnelanden also uses the water for cleaning their road sweepers and garbage trucks.
The data acquired from this research was then compared to information in the Tjaden archives and the results of two drillings. ‘Based on that, we created a design for this sustainable water supply system’, Dorlandt explains. ‘We also took care of the entire permit process for the client, which was required to comply with local water management laws.’ Tjaden has constructed two water wells for this project. ‘This was a conscious choice we made together with the client in order to guarantee the availability of water even during winter when it freezes. The two silos have a 400 tons storage capacity, which turns it into the biggest system in Europe. In the unexpected event that one of the silos would malfunction in the future, the redundant second silo will always be available to be used at will.’
One of the silos of the salt mixing station.
ROAD SWEEPERS
This double tank installation is not only meant to serve as a backup. Spaarnelanden can also use one of the sources for filling and cleaning their road sweepers and garbage trucks. ‘The company previously used another source for this, but the water there was so soiled that expensive filters were required to clean it. This is no longer required as our new sources are able to deliver drinking water quality. It contains no sand or sludge at all’, Dorlandt shares. The business unit manager also emphasizes that high-end materials, such as stainless steel wellheads, were used to connect the water sources. A lot of attention was also spent on the advanced measuring and regulating station. ‘This allows us to manage and monitor the station remotely using laptops or smartphones. Some major settings of the station, such as the pressure, flow or time delay, can also be easily managed and adjusted. In the previous month we have been busy making some small modifications to the station to further optimize its usage and achieve optimum performance under all circumstances.’
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‘ The sun is our future’ Sustainability is a hot topic, yet there are few companies who have integrated this strategy into their policy to such a degree that it has become part of their core business. Kaal Masten however, is such a company, as the Dutch industry leading manufacturer of high-end masts and columns proved in 2013. Throughout this year they developed an entire product line based on solar power, starting with the award winning Solar Powered Lighting Column SPIRIT. TEXT Richard van Santen
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n increasing amount of governmental and other institutions have the task to provide for sufficient lighting to create an attractive and safe public environment, while decreasing their power consumption. The SPIRIT is a perfect solution for that. This column is fully coated with solar panels which allow it to generate 100% of its energy need that is stored within its own systems. The SPIRIT can be installed on virtually every location and doesn’t even need a connection to the power grid. All energy stored throughout the day can be used from dusk to dawn. And, should the battery not be able to harvest 100% of its capacity on a cloudy day, then the mast automatically uses its intelligent energy management system that works even more efficiently. It does so by dimming the lights when it’s not fully dark outside, or switching off when there is no need for light and then switching back on when lighting is again required.
KAAL: AHEAD OF THE CURVE
Considering all R&D that went into its development, the SPIRIT is currently not a cheap mast. ‘We therefore do not expect to immediately start replacing every single lamppost in the world’, says Kaal Masten Director Jos van den Hurk, ‘but the
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sun is definitely our future. Since we’re an industry leader, we decided we should be the company that actually developed this product. You’ll see, somewhere in the coming decade this will be a mainstream product.’ Mr. van der Hurk does not stand alone in this perception. Recently, the SPIRIT has already won its second award during the election of the ‘Product Enlightenmentz of the Year 2013’, a contest that fully revolved around product designs that are not only sustainable, but also look appealing and are comfortable to use, and with that ‘play an important role in the green revolution.’ BUDGET VERSION
By releasing a more affordable version, Kaal Masten is able to accelerate this revolution even more. This budget version of the SPIRIT is slightly
smaller, and rather than being fully coated with solar panels, it is equipped with a solar panel directed at the south in an angle. The intelligent battery system has also been developed somewhat more simplistic. Kaal Masten believes this is a great solution for areas where the sun shines more often but budgets may be more constrained. Another spin-off can now also be admired on the parking lot in front of the mast factory: the SPIRIT Energy Tracker. This column does not provide for lighting, but is equipped with 16 to 24 solar panels that cooperate to generate enough power to recharge an electric car. For optimum performance, its frame rotates along with the sun during the day. The first clients, mostly companies for whom sustainability is a top priority and who do not hesitate to share this vision with the world, have already ordered this distinctive mast.
‘Veghel behind digital city walls’ A.Hak Infranet region South is one of the partners contributing to ‘Veghel behind digital city walls’, a highly innovative project in which an interactive LED-light curtain enlightens the mall in Veghel. This project was completed in close cooperation with Philips. TEXT Senid Salihovic
The Municipality of Veghel, Professor Cor Molenaar, an association of local entrepreneurs and various educational and research institutes; they all joined forces to turn this project into a success. This cooperation strives for a city center with a high level of amenities, combined with pleasurable accommodations and an atmospheric public space. MASTER PLAN
Philips designed a master plan for the city center in which façade lighting, directional interactive LED lighting and sound are fully integrated. A sensor system manages the light intensity depending on the requirements of the moment, but also forms a great foundation for stimulating walking routes. ‘An important segment for the Municipality of Veghel is’ the Alley’, the entrance towards the center which has been enriched
with an interactive light curtain that stimulates the attention of people visiting the area’, Molenaar shares. ‘At the entrance of the shopping mall, façade lighting and directional lighting have been fully integrated. In order to refer to the experience of a tunnel roof, we installed an evenly distributed pixel net with 2,144 pixels over a length of 40 meters, which can be managed independently and is able to create all possible colors’, as stated by Philips. CABLING AND ASSEMBLY
‘This project was completed in three months’, Ben van der Linden explains on behalf of A.Hak Infranet region South. ‘2,000 meters of cable was used to support the sound and electronics. These cables are installed in tubes at a depth of 70 centimeters and stainless steel gutters against the walls. All these cables were assembled in a cabinet filled with all required components. For us this was a very educational project in completing dynamic lighting combined with sound.’ Now that the first phase was completed successfully and received nationwide attention, the municipality decided to carry out the second phase of the plan. On October 18th 2013, Martijn van Dam, member of the Dutch Parliament, officially opened the Alley.
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Around the world Headquarters The Netherlands
A.Hak supports clients all across the globe. This map shows where our companies have permanent locations. We also highlight some special projects on various continents. Of course we expect to further fill in this map in the years to come.
Germany Italy Austria
France
Poland Serbia
United States United Kingdom
Romania
Canada
Spain 3
Brazil
2
1
4
Saudi Arabia Nigeria
Chile
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South Africa
COLOMBIA: HDD 1
In Colombia, A.Hak Drillcon carried out 4 HDD’s in 2013. This expert in trenchless drilling technology completed a project where others failed due to the difficult soil conditions.
SAUDI ARABIA: WADIS 2
Malaysia
In 2013, work on an enormous project steadily continued in Saudi Arabia: the substantial improvement of the water supply to the nation’s capital Riyadh. Gigantic water pipelines are constructed in dry river beds, the so called wadis.
FRANCE: DIRECT PIPE 3
A.Hak Drillcon also completed various projects in France, where the Direct Pipe drilling method was successfully used for the first time on French soil in a project awarded by GRTgaz, crossing a road, a nature reserve and the Somme River.
MOZAMBIQUE: WATER 4
United Arab Emirates
Australia
A.Hak applied its skills in Mozambique as part of its commitment to the Water for Life project, an initiative hosted by water companies Vitens and Evides. Together with their clients, these companies endeavor to improve the drinking water facilities in emerging countries.
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GENERAL INFORMATION
Giving it our all since 1963 When our founder Arie Hak started his small business in 1963, he could not have predicted that over the next half century, his firm would become the high-end multinational expert with a leading role in various industries it is today. Some years after Mr. Hak passed away, it was Willem van Geen足huizen who led the firm into a new era of global expansion. Despite of all the changes we went through, the good oldfashioned qualities on which our success was built are still fully integrated in the company. A.Hak still is a family company that thrives on its loyal, knowledgeable and highly involved staff. After more than fifty years, our clients still describe us as a committed partner that goes to great lengths to deliver the best work time and time again. A.Hak projects are therefore simply not completed until our client confirms that all objectives have been attained. Based on this mentality, combined with the Dutch tradition of smart innovation and the ability to work and deliver all across the globe, we look forward to a bright future together with our current and future clients.
BEVERWIJK-WIJNGAARDEN, MAY 2013
Construction of gas transport pipeline for Gasunie