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An expansive rooflight refurbishment with big green goals

In the Netherlands, Almere Centrum Railway Station has undergone a roof refurbishment. Today this concourse renovation covers communal spaces in daylight. 

Securing the project and going green to provide sustainability

Following a call for tenders by client ProRail, contractor Straal-en schildersbedrijf West secured the project. West specialize in maintenance and chose VELUX Commercial as a partner to replace all polycarbonate and glass rooflights. The structural glazing replacement also had to withstand high wind pressure caused by building developments surrounding Almere Centrum. 

ProRail chose clear glass and polycarbonate dome rooflights to create an aesthetic of transparency. A goal was to make Almere Centrum the greenest railway station in the Netherlands. On project completion, 1,238 roof solar panels will help realize an ambitious green goal. These installations include integrated solar cells in sloping glass panel façades. Solar panels and integrated cells (BIPV Built in Photo Voltaic Cells) span the entirety of the roof. Approximately 387 kWh of energy will be generated in total. 

Rooflight installation

VELUX Commercial’s Operations Manager, Luke Wijnands, has overseen this large refurbishment project, which also includes replacing 126 existing dome rooflights. A total of six roof sections equate to 126 dome rooflights.

The new glass system had to meet strict regulatory and performance requirements. Improvements now include robust 4mm glass which can absorb high wind forces. ProRail wind requirements mean clamping and fixing upgrades are also complete. 

Accommodating public interest 

It was important construction caused minimal disruption to public services. Local authorities were reluctant to close transport accessibility, but with communication, compromises were made, and obstacles overcome. 

“You find solutions by talking and working with local authorities to find a compromise,” Luke said.  

Several train free periods (TFPs) created small windows to install access equipment such as scaffolding and hydraulic lifts. A safety scaffold platform was created for out of service hours to enable rooflights to be replaced and installed by staff. 2,500 square metres of platform was erected above the train tracks for staff to work on. This task was achieved with only 52 hours of TFP time available, and complete within nine months. 

Why choose VELUX Commercial?

“VELUX Commercial deliver on their promise and have company engineers who are certified and possess a Digital Safety Passport. This is a requirement to work on any ProRail site. Once one rooflight was installed, and then a second, things ran like a well-oiled machine.”

West Contractor and Project Manager Rook Treffers considers VELUX Commercial to have been part of West’s thought process as lead contractor. If the client asked for something new, team West took input from their daylighting partners. 

“Buildings adjacent to the station had two additional storeys added,” Rook said, “this meant that the solar panels on the south side of Almere Centrum’s roof would produce 18 percent less energy, due to shadowing. As our rooflight partners, VELUX Commercial worked with us and were on hand to find a solution.” 

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Products used in project

126 x dome rooflights

Single-unit Dome Rooflights

Highly versatile and thermally efficient dome rooflights for flat roofs

Dome Rooflight - Dome Read more
10 x dual pitched rooflights

Structural Glazing System

Roof glazing system with close to unlimited design freedom

Read more
8 x mono pitched rooflights

Structural Glazing System

Roof glazing system with close to unlimited design freedom

Read more

Single-unit Dome Rooflights

Highly versatile and thermally efficient dome rooflights for flat roofs

Dome Rooflight - Dome Read more

Structural Glazing System

Roof glazing system with close to unlimited design freedom

Read more

Structural Glazing System

Roof glazing system with close to unlimited design freedom

Read more

Luke Wijnands

VELUX Commercial, Operations Manager

We replaced the existing opal-glazing domes with new clear polycarbonate glazing, allowing more light into the station. It was the ideal time because once solar panels had been installed, due to their size, it would have been very difficult to replace the original opal-glazing.

Rook Treffers

Project Manager, Contractor, Straal-en schildersbedrijf West

VELUX Commercial deliver on their promise and have company engineers who are certified and possess a Digital Safety Passport. This is a requirement to work on any ProRail site. Once one rooflight was installed, and then a second, things ran like a well-oiled machine.

1,238 roof solar panels installed

Solar panel installations will help meet a sustainability goal that makes Almere Centrum the greenest railway station in the Netherlands.
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