After a two-and-a-half-year renovation, contractor SPIE formally handed over the Nikhef building at Amsterdam Science Park back to the NWO Institute for Subatomic Physics on Thursday.
During a brief meeting in the building’s new central hall, the so-called Vertex, the signatures for the transfer were signed Thursday, Oct. 26, by institute manager at Nikhef Arjen van Rijn and the project manager on behalf of SPIE, Arjan Arentse.
The handover means that the building area is again useable and can be entered without helmets and safety equipment. Next week, most of the groups and departments will move back into office wing H. Wing N was already completed and reoccupied last year.
However, the interior and technical installations will continue to be finished in the coming weeks. The hall will also house a permanent exhibition on Nikhef and particle physics.
Renovation of the Nikhef buildings began in March 2021 after years of preparation. Installations, functionality and the appearance of the institute would be renewed and improved. For example, the entrance to the institute was moved to the front on the Kruislaan side, much more visible from the ASP-UvA complex across the street.
The most striking change in the renovation was the new construction of a new central hall with meeting spaces and a lecture hall on the site of the former courtyard. The space’s name Vertex emphasizes the meeting aspect; in particle physics, the vertex is where particles collide in accelerators and detectors.
The design for the renewed building was created by a team of JHK Architects (design), Deerns (engineering) and Aronson (construction).
Institute manager Van Rijn said he was relieved about the handover. “It has taken a long time, and not everything is completely finished yet, but it is fantastic that we can all return to our own building and we can put the new Nikhef into full use.”
