At the start of 2026, Bouwkroniek lets leading voices from the construction industry and laureates of the Building Construction Awards have their say. From Group Jansen, CCO Sarai Bervoets looked back on 2025 and talked about the opportunities and challenges she sees heading into 2026.
The questions
1. What was the biggest surprise in your field this past year?
2. What accomplishment of your company are you most proud of?
3. What have you read, listened to or seen in 2025 that has stayed with you?
4. What trend do you see for 2026?
Answers from Sarai Bervoets, CCO at Group Jansen:
1. The speed at which AI is now really breaking through in the construction industry. What was a buzzword for years is today a concrete accelerator for planning, design and site follow-up. At Group Jansen, a series of AI workshops already produced the first promising results: smarter document management, more efficient internal communication, and better project preparation. This gives our professionals time for the real work.
2. On the growth of our integrated approach to Makers, Builders and Sustainers in a variety of sectors. We have proven again this year that one point of contact, one planning and one team of more than 750 in-house professionals creates absolute added value. For Hotel Métropole, for example, a 267-room luxury hotel, we see the enormous benefits on site every day.
3. I was particularly struck by cases where digitization had a really tangible impact. The Dalux Summit in Copenhagen, where we spoke, stood out for me. Seeing how international construction teams are taking BIM and digital site monitoring to the next level confirmed our investments. And our podcast: getting to know colleagues as people, not just functions. Super fun!
4. Hybrid building models are becoming mainstream. Prefab, modular and digital coordination are merging. Even in challenging environments. For Group Jansen, this means even more integrated engineering, digital twins and smart prefabrication. In addition, circularity remains a trend. With Cicé, we are already making sustainable ceramics from plaster waste. Soon we will launch new applications.