On Thursday evening, October 19, UNIZO Flemish Brabant & Brussels announced the winners of the UNIZO AWARD Year 2023 and Promising SME of the Year 2023 awards. BuildUp from Aarschot can now call itself Provincial SME of the Year for a year. Office Angels from Zemst takes home the title of Promising SME of the Year. BuildUp will now advance to the national competition, where it will compete with the four other provincial winners for the national title of SME of the Year 2023.
©Caroline Dupont Photography
BuildUp grew from a start-up of beSteel – market leader in steel frame construction in the Benelux – into a large SME in 2023. With 35 employees and a pool of freelancers, they are revolutionizing the construction sector.
In Europe, 43 million homes need to undergo energy renovation to make the continent climate neutral by 2050. The only way to accomplish this enormous task by 2050 is through extensive and structural renovation of homes. In addition to solar panels and heat pump solutions, this can be achieved by installing an insulating building envelope or climate jacket around homes. This is where BuildUp comes in.
BuildUp carries out its activities off-site, i.e. almost exclusively in its own production hall. From calculations, design, and engineering to production and assembly. This ensures a more efficient, faster, and more sustainable construction process. Transport and waste are reduced, and the labor shortage can also be partially offset. In addition, recyclable and biobased materials are used as much as possible. This ensures a time- and price-certain end product with a lower carbon footprint.
“BuildUp shows that you can use innovation based on a solid product and solid activities (beSteel). Hélène de Troostembergh has also implemented the values she holds dear at BuildUp: Excellence, through a clear vision and objectives. Respect for fellow human beings and customers. And impact within the company, in terms of the product but also, and not to be ignored, towards the planet. With a young and driven team, she wants to rethink the construction process by no longer looking solely at the construction costs but taking the total costs into account (cf. the automotive sector). In addition to the fact that BuildUp generates part of its turnover abroad, the jury was very impressed by the innovative approach!
Elke Tielemans
Vincent Van Leemputten from Office Angels (third from left) ©Caroline Dupont Photography
Promising SME of the Year
Office Angels from Zemst was voted provincial ‘Promising SME of the Year 2023’. Office Angels has a unique ecosystem that helps small SMEs grow and flourish. The Office Angels team offers affordable support to entrepreneurs who want to focus on their core business. They do this in various areas, ranging from office management, sales, website management, IT, marketing, training, project management, HR, legal, to monitoring your business goals.
Elke Tielemans: “With a well-founded business plan and a clear strategy focused on small businesses, Vincent Van Leemputten’s company is setting a clear course. Moreover, the wide range of support services has enabled the company to build long-term relationships and significantly expand its customer portfolio in a short period of time. The subscription formulas are in line with this and contribute to the company’s healthy cash flow. The foundations are in place to further realize national and international ambitions.”
National title
With this annual award, UNIZO aims to highlight and reward driven entrepreneurs and outstanding entrepreneurship. A professional jury of experts assessed the candidates in various areas of entrepreneurship, such as financial policy, marketing & communication, innovation, (ambition for) international entrepreneurship, personnel policy, energy & environment, and entrepreneurial spirit.
Elke Tielemans: “With the ‘SME of the Year’ award, we not only recognize the entrepreneurship of the winners, but also emphasize the importance of small and medium-sized enterprises for our Belgian economy in general. They are flexible, innovative, and crucial to our prosperity. That deserves recognition.”
©Caroline Dupont Photography
More information?
Contact Hester Vanermen: 016 24 41 03 or hester.vanermen@unizo.be
Photos may only be distributed with the mandatory copyright notice: ©Caroline Dupont Photography.
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