In the week of July 2 through 6 employees of the EPC will disconnect their own tools and machinery, pack them away and ensure - possibly by using forklift trucks - that they is loaded onto the removal trucks. In Matrix, some four hundred paces away - everything will be unpacked. Included in the removal are the staff computers, the smallest screws and bolts, and even a machine weighing 10,000 kilos for milling metal.

Nerve-wracking

Contractor Strukton had from November 2017 through June 15 to turn the office floors in Matrix into a building capable of accommodating TU/e innovation Space and program class rooms and the EPC. “It is a very short timeframe for a job like this,” says Wim Peters, director of the EPC. He and his colleagues went regularly to take a look at progress. “So far everything has gone smoothly, but I still find it a little nerve-wracking to think what state it will be in on Friday. Will there be power, will the ventilation work, and the bathrooms? Will we be able to get straight to work? We'll find out.”

Floating floor

An important job involved installing a floating floor under the machines that produce a lot of noise. "Pieces of floor on the ground floor were taken out and piles were driven so that the vibrations go into the depths instead of the floor,” says Peters. “Because the building has various users, the acoustics are very important. Panels are suspended in the space to absorb noise, as they are in the Music building. In the program class rooms there must be silence, the EPC cannot work without making noise, and at TU/e innovation Space there will sometimes be lively meetings and sometimes it must be possible to work without interruption.”

Not fond of moving

The EPC has relocated in the past, an experience it can now draw on. Peters: “Ten-and-a-half years ago we came from the W corridor to the TNO building. At the time a good inventory was drawn up. And we know that during construction we have to pay close attention to prevent mistakes being made. But we are not fond of moving, inevitably work is disrupted and projects make slower progress because so much time is spent in extra meetings.” So during the period around the move (from June 25 through July 13) the EPC will be able to do less for its clients in TU/e departments and external companies, the director is keen to point out.