Qualitative, economical and sustainable construction with concrete

Future-oriented production of prestressed vaults

Nerva has long been committed to quality. After being fully taken over by the French company Rector in 2021, sustainability becomes a second important pillar. Thanks to decades of experience and the new momentum, they have already realized more than 23,000 projects, using more than 6 MIO m2 of vaulting.

Striving for quality in every area

Erik Geerts, director and sales director of Nerva: "For us, quality embraces the entire process. Assisting customers technically right from the preliminary study is of vital importance. This is how we help to build as economically as possible with one important thing in mind: not to compromise on quality. Because we accompany our customers from the order form and throughout the entire process - including the preparation of laying plans and optimal freight allocation - we save a great deal of time and money on site. Transport optimization also reduces CO2 emissions. Our entire team does a wonderful job in this regard with many loyal customers as a result."

Product quality is guaranteed by Benor and NF accreditations. "Due to our activities in the highly regulated French market, we are even used to doing even better in terms of dimensional stability and concrete composition. As prestressed concrete can be subject to external factors, we always work with JIT deliveries which means that the elements are not affected by adverse weather conditions or too long storage."

Sustainable in many aspects

Says Geerts, "Sustainability is expressed at our company in many areas, including the product itself, its lifespan, production processes and handling. Low emissions, backed by strict French regulations, are the norm with us. More sustainable production is backed by cooperation with our neighbor, the Imog waste treatment plant. Castings are made on highly heated lanes, and to do this we used to consume thousands of liters of fuel oil per year, with all the CO2 emissions that this entails. Now we heat the lanes via a pipe network with waste heat from the Imog power plant. In addition, we supply our own power needs through solar panels on our new offices. All wastewater is also recovered and treated, giving us zero discharge status. Waste concrete is also reused in the production of new elements."

"Finally, through Rector's research department, we are closely involved in some exciting and future-oriented projects to reduce our ecological footprint even further," concludes Geerts. "One example is the search for environmentally friendly cement substitutes that will allow us to work more ecologically right from the raw material production stage. This brings us full circle and brings us a big step closer to 100% circular construction."