Robert van Dinteren

What’s it like to work at Bulsink? Who better to answer that question than our own people. In our employee stories, we want to give you a behind-the-scenes look at our corporate culture. Today it’s the turn of Robert van Dinteren, Project Manager at Bulsink.

Can you tell us a bit about yourself?

“My name is Robert van Dinteren. I’m 43 years old and have been living in Taragona, Spain, for nearly two years. Back in the Netherlands I held various positions in construction; the last five years for a project management agency specialising in retail projects.”

“My wife is from Catalonia and always dreamt of becoming a teacher. There were more opportunities for her in Spain than in the Netherlands. After she found work here, I handed in my notice and made the journey south to be with her and our daughter of six months at the time.”

“When I arrived, the whole country was in total lockdown. So I didn’t do much for the first six months. I took that as a bonus, enjoying the quality time with our daughter. Then the country carefully started opening up again, I started studying again and Bulsink also came my way.”

How did that happen? How did you and Bulsink cross paths?

“They were looking at projects in Spain and got a tip from a colleague at Bulsink. That’s how we started talking. In that period I also did some measuring and layout work on a restaurant for one of Bulsink’s clients, but things were quiet for a while after that. Especially with the whole predicament around the COVID pandemic.”

“After a while they called again. Whether I could come to Madrid to do some interpreting for them and to look at two Basic-Fit projects with them. Then we also met in person and they actually asked me quite quickly whether I would be interested in working for Bulsink España as Project Manager.”

What does your job as Project Manager entail? And how does it feel to work as a Dutch Project Manager in Spain?

“Basic-Fit has huge international growth ambitions. And to realise those ambitions, they needed partners like Bulsink. The two branches in Madrid were my first projects. They ranged from working out the pricing and informing suppliers, to arranging all the permits.”

“I learned a great deal very quickly during my first projects. About Basic-Fit and Bulsink, but also that things work differently in Spain than in the Netherlands. Just because I think things can get done better, faster and cheaper according to the ‘Dutch school’, doesn’t make it true. If the system doesn’t work that way, I can think like that for a very long time… but on my own!”

“The hierarchy, meeting structures, working hours, building materials, construction methods, schedules, permits. Everything is different here. One thing that’s the same is the end goal. Creating beautiful, cool projects for our clients. And we definitely reach that goal, only the road getting there is different. I’m fortunate that Bulsink gives me the space to pioneer: do your thing, don’t shy away from a challenge.”

“I make sure I’ve done my homework, so we can take other stakeholders by the hand.”

Bulsink uses B.U.I.L.D. as its core values: Brand-conscious, Ultra-fast, Inspiring, Leading and Determined.  Can you pick out one or two core values and explain what they mean to you?

“Leading. At Bulsink we lead the way in creating better building structures. We achieve success by staying ahead of the game. And we take the initiative in projects.”

“I’m not saying that we impose our will on our partners, but we do lead by example. And we ask what others need in order to make a project successful. That also applies to me as a person. You’ll always find me on the building site wearing my construction shoes. And I make sure I’ve done my homework, so that we can take other stakeholders by the hand.”