Move to our new building
We already know that TML exists for over 20 years. It is also known that we have become bigger and bigger in the meantime. But the fact that our building became too small may be new to some. Due to TML’s systematic personnel growth, we have already completed a typical relocation process. After TML started in a room of the KU Leuven Department of Civil Engineering, it was soon decided to move into an apartment on the Tervuursevest. Some time later, our company populated an old school building in the Vital Decosterstraat in the centre of Leuven. And then the day came when we set up our first real big move, namely the move to Diestsesteenweg.
It was only a matter of time before we started to burst at the seams there too. After a series of waves of recruitment, we got very creative in finding desk positions for new employees. You could sit along the stairs, or in a hitherto unused corner. Sometimes we just tried to move our desks closer together in order to give someone a place to sit.
It was a nice atmosphere in itself, especially when everyone was there at the same time. But at times it became a bit more chaotic, and especially noisier. More people present also means more interactions with external parties such as our customers and project partners. And you could also hear more call traffic, or more discussions between the employees. Isolating yourself become less obvious, because we were in open landscapes and there was only one meeting room. For those who wanted to continue working quietly, this was sometimes too disturbing an influence.
The need began to grow. We wanted more meeting rooms, bubbles to make short communications, a nice, well-lit place for everyone, quiet desks that could be closed, etc. Again we were looking forward to a new location, a new space. The preconditions had not yet changed: large enough and easily accessible by bicycle and public transport.
Finally we stumbled upon the warehouse of an old printing house, which was only 50 metres down the street from our current building. We promptly bought it. The renovation, a multi-stage process, could begin. Regularly coordinating everything with the architects, tearing down the entire interior, building new structures, ensuring that the energy supply is in working order, not to mention the Herculean work of getting our entire IT infrastructure operational.
Despite the wonderful plans, we had to postpone our move several times. But finally, the day approached, the day when sunlight shone again for everyone. We were well prepared in the weeks leading up to this: each employee received a box for all personal items that could already be moved.
After a short and powerful ski trip with the colleagues, we drove back to Leuven by bus from Austria from Sunday night to Monday morning. That Monday, March 13, at 8 a.m., we ate pastries for the last time in our old building. And then it was a matter of continuing to struggle, and with many hands to move everything that was loose and had to change location. It was an intense day, and by extension, a busy week. In the months that followed, minor finishing touches were made to the building, curtains were hung, televisions installed in the conference rooms, the garden and courtyard put in order, beautiful plants and other greenery were purchased, etc. Our new building is completely climate-friendly: we have a heat pump, our roof is fitted with 82 solar panels, there is automatic energy-efficient ventilation, there is sufficient light and space everywhere, a 10,000 liter rainwater tank, both indoor and outdoor bicycle storage, two large showers, we are fully wheelchair accessible, and we have a beautiful garden with flower boxes and benches to relax between hard work. There is even room for a barbecue!
And now.
Now everyone is in their place.
And our company, as it has done every day since its inception, is smoothly running at full speed.
It was only a matter of time before we started to burst at the seams there too. After a series of waves of recruitment, we got very creative in finding desk positions for new employees. You could sit along the stairs, or in a hitherto unused corner. Sometimes we just tried to move our desks closer together in order to give someone a place to sit.
It was a nice atmosphere in itself, especially when everyone was there at the same time. But at times it became a bit more chaotic, and especially noisier. More people present also means more interactions with external parties such as our customers and project partners. And you could also hear more call traffic, or more discussions between the employees. Isolating yourself become less obvious, because we were in open landscapes and there was only one meeting room. For those who wanted to continue working quietly, this was sometimes too disturbing an influence.
The need began to grow. We wanted more meeting rooms, bubbles to make short communications, a nice, well-lit place for everyone, quiet desks that could be closed, etc. Again we were looking forward to a new location, a new space. The preconditions had not yet changed: large enough and easily accessible by bicycle and public transport.
Finally we stumbled upon the warehouse of an old printing house, which was only 50 metres down the street from our current building. We promptly bought it. The renovation, a multi-stage process, could begin. Regularly coordinating everything with the architects, tearing down the entire interior, building new structures, ensuring that the energy supply is in working order, not to mention the Herculean work of getting our entire IT infrastructure operational.
Despite the wonderful plans, we had to postpone our move several times. But finally, the day approached, the day when sunlight shone again for everyone. We were well prepared in the weeks leading up to this: each employee received a box for all personal items that could already be moved.
After a short and powerful ski trip with the colleagues, we drove back to Leuven by bus from Austria from Sunday night to Monday morning. That Monday, March 13, at 8 a.m., we ate pastries for the last time in our old building. And then it was a matter of continuing to struggle, and with many hands to move everything that was loose and had to change location. It was an intense day, and by extension, a busy week. In the months that followed, minor finishing touches were made to the building, curtains were hung, televisions installed in the conference rooms, the garden and courtyard put in order, beautiful plants and other greenery were purchased, etc. Our new building is completely climate-friendly: we have a heat pump, our roof is fitted with 82 solar panels, there is automatic energy-efficient ventilation, there is sufficient light and space everywhere, a 10,000 liter rainwater tank, both indoor and outdoor bicycle storage, two large showers, we are fully wheelchair accessible, and we have a beautiful garden with flower boxes and benches to relax between hard work. There is even room for a barbecue!
And now.
Now everyone is in their place.
And our company, as it has done every day since its inception, is smoothly running at full speed.
