First Construction Phase
All 276 piles have been ‘bammed in’! On 17 March, the first pile of Depot Boijmans Van Beuningen was turned into the ground by the Mayor of Rotterdam, Ahmed Aboutaleb. He announced the moment with the following words: “a few days after the [general] election, the first pile has been ‘bammed’ into the ground; we are going to BAM!’ making a pun on the name of the contractor: BAM.
At the end of May, the pile driver was removed, for all 276 piles had been installed. The 28.5-metre-long piles were not driven in, but ‘screwed in’, to cause as little noise and nuisance as possible. The first stage of the construction process went extremely well.
Now the contractor is working on the foundations for the tower crane. This will be located in the shaft which will later house the art lift. The foundations are being poured at a depth of four metres. A large round pit will be dug in which a frame will be made, anchored into the concrete so that the crane will be secured.