Inspection of spans

Sustainable collaboration for social return

The City of Amsterdam asks its contractors to give back to the city, for example by creating jobs. Through its partnership with Pantar, Normec Rei-Lux is putting social return into practice.

Very Broadly Focused

Pantar employs approximately 3,000 people, 300 of whom are part of the administrative and related departments. The remaining employees are spread across various operational areas such as Logistics, Industry, Trades, Facilities, and Parks and Gardens. Jacob: “For example, we handle all landscaping in Amsterdam for the city government, as well as the collection of all trash that doesn’t fit in the large garbage trucks. In Amsterdam-Noord, there’s a Pantar facility where bicycles are manufactured and lights for Schiphol Airport are repaired. There’s even a mosaic department, as well as a woodworking shop. If you stand here in the middle of the city and look around, you’ll see a huge number of things that Pantar has helped create.”

Jacob oversees the transportation of both goods and people. “When necessary, we pick up the people who work here in Diemen at our four large industrial buildings, where all kinds of work is done that fits within a social enterprise. We also transport employees to companies that employ our people, from Almere to The Hague.”

Part-time work

Roosmarijn Franken of Normec Rei-Lux was referred to Pantar’s Transportation Department by the City of Amsterdam. “The City of Amsterdam, their client, had referred Normec Rei-Lux to us,” Jacob explains. “The request to deliver letters to local residents came to our department because our drivers experience morning and evening peaks in their workload. During the day, there aren’t many trips for them. Thanks to assignments like this, we can also offer them work in between. They enjoy it—they get to be outside in the fresh air. They take the letters with them on their route, and as soon as that route is finished, they drive on to the streets where they need to be and deliver the letters. To do that, they have to travel all over the city—one week to Southeast, the next to North. How busy it is depends on the schedule.”

A Pleasant Partnership

Delivering letters is nothing new for Pantar. For example, they also do this in IJburg for a large postal company. Around Christmas, they often deliver mailings, and they distribute informational booklets for schools in Amsterdam.

Jacob: “This assignment has been ongoing for several years because the project itself has been running that long. Sometimes it’s a bit busier than others, but for each batch, it takes us a few days to deliver everything. Everything is going well; Roosmarijn is satisfied with us, and we have a pleasant working relationship. We couldn’t ask for more.”