Cleanrooms for HALIX, a technical masterpiece

Kuijpers is the main contractor for this production facility. Together with its partners Du Prie (construction contractor), Cleanroom Combination Group (cleanrooms), EGM (architect), and IMD (structural engineering firm), the new building is now taking shape. “Technology will be the beating heart of this HALIX production facility. The process ultimately determines the design and how the building is laid out,” says project manager William Dirks. “That’s why HALIX selected us to lead the project. We then built the architectural shell around it with our partners.” After a year and a half of construction, the structural work is nearly complete. In parallel, Kuijpers is fully engaged in the finishing phase; by the end of June 2019, HALIX will already start using part of the production facility.

HALIX commissioned Kuijpers in early 2018 to design the production facility, complete with cleanrooms and the necessary technical installations. In the design phase that followed, Kuijpers applied what’s known as target value design. By clearly showing the client the (financial) consequences of certain choices, decisions could be made quickly and efficiently. This approach paved the way for a smooth execution, which began in July 2018. The construction team – led by Kuijpers – is delivering the project in phases.

The building consists of four production floors, a technical space on the roof, and office space on the ground floor, totaling 6,680 square meters of gross floor area. Kuijpers is providing the full range of technical solutions, from measurement and control technology and building automation to power supply and ventilation systems for efficient processes and comfortable working conditions. The most complex aspects of the project lie in constructing a cleanroom on each production floor.

Kuijpers is building these according to the box-in-box principle, where the cleanrooms have their own structural design and ventilation systems. Think of regulated pressure cascades of underpressure and/or overpressure in the cleanrooms. These pressure cascades are necessary to prevent substances or vapors from escaping or particles, fibers, or microorganisms from entering the rooms.

The swift construction progress is thanks to teamwork and short communication lines between all parties, including client HALIX. After less than a year of building, the highest point of the new facility was reached on May 7, 2019. By November 2019, the project should be fully completed, including all checks to ensure everything functions according to standards, GMP guidelines, and agreed quality benchmarks. As the final step of the project, Kuijpers will carry out the required commissioning and qualification on behalf of HALIX.