Pluggable e-installation for the Palace of Justice

Text: Lieke van Zuilekom I Visuals: Isolectra

Under the motto of ‘sustainable justice,’ the Palace of Justice in Den Bosch will be extensively renovated. The main goal is to make the work environment of the courthouse of East Brabant, the court of 's-Hertogenbosch and the Public Prosecution Department more sustainable to ensure it can meet the requirements of today and tomorrow.

The activities are being carried out by the consortium of Dura Vermeer and Croonwolter&dros and began in April of 2021. “As the Palace of Justice will remain in use throughout the renovation, it was decided to divide the execution into phases,” says Michel Molenaar, project manager at Croonwolter&dros. “The third and final phase of the renovation began in September. The project is scheduled to be completed by June of 2023. Based on a design by Fokkema & Partners Architecten, the long, dark corridors with their many small offices are being transformed into open and transparent pathways and spaces. Comfortable, light and modern workspaces are being created throughout the entire building. We are also improving the building's sound insulation to ensure staff can work on their cases quietly and with optimal focus. The partition walls make it easy to increase or reduce the size of the workspaces. Furthermore, the building's new structure is designed to accommodate other judicial organisations in thefuture, such as the Immigration and Naturalisation Service, the Child Care and Protection Board and the Repatriation and Departure Service.”

Pluggable wherever possible
To elevate the sustainability and (working) comfort throughout the Palace of Justice to the highest level, new climate installations such as a heat pump are being installed. “In doing so, we are taking an important step toward an all-electric future,” says Molenaar. “We are also overhauling all technical installations. Wherever possible, we are using Isolectra's pluggable solutions.”

Molenaar embraced pluggable installation way back in 2007, he says. “Particularly because pluggable installation saves vast amounts of time during the execution phase, without compromising the quality or lifespan of the installations. In recent years, I worked together with Isolectra to determine where installation processes could be improved and expedited. Croonwolter&dros continues to reap the rewards of that to this day. In the Palace of Justice, both the lighting system and the electrical infrastructure are being installed in a pluggable manner. As the renovation is being conducted on the basis of a UAV-GC contract, we must be able to guarantee the quality of the installations for a minimum of ten years. With Isolectra's pluggable Wieland installations and our own in-depth knowledge of pluggable installation, that is not a problem for us at all.”

Repeating patterns
“The Palace of Justice contains many repeating patterns,” says Frans van Loon, Key Account Manager at Isolectra. “This makes the building ideally suited for pluggable installation. Additionally, pluggable installation creates the desired flexibility. The installation in a specific part of the building can easily be modified. When partition walls are moved, for example, the Wieland cables can easily be disconnected and modified to accommodate the new situation.”

Separate power and DALI signal
Isolectra initially designed a pluggable solution to light the office spaces, Van Loon explains. “For the lighting system, we used a Wieland GST18i3^® coupling cable for the power supply and Wieland GST15i2^® DALI coupling cables, which connect the light fixtures to a Priva measuring and control unit in the hallway. By using separate Wieland cables for the power supply and the DALI signal, the light fixtures can easily be connected across groups for even greater flexibility.”

Three-phase flat cable system
For the hallways, Isolectra designed a five-core three-phase Wieland flat cable system that is installed in the cable tray. “The flat cable system supplies constant power to the emergency lighting,” Molenaar says. “It also allows us to control the hallway lights.” Van Loon: “The phase (1, 2 or 3) of the flat cable's tapping points can easily be adjusted. It is also possible to directly connect a Wieland cable to, for example, power the lighting.”

All pluggable Wieland components are delivered per building section and per floor by wholesaler Technische Unie. This allows the technicians of Croonwolter&dros to work quickly and ensures they have all the parts they need when they need them.