Charlotte Mekel
Employee portrait
Charlotte Mekel
‘As a project manager, I’m more of a generalist than a specialist’
Charlotte Mekel is a civil engineer who works on drinking and process water. For a long time, she was a specialist. But then she wanted to take a new step in her career. And she got the chance.
Basic need
‘At school, I liked geography: the weather, the earth, how tectonic plates move over each other. My sister reminded me the other day that, when I was young, I wanted to be a weather girl. I didn’t end up studying geography, though, instead choosing civil engineering. But during my master’s, I kind of went back to geography by focusing on water. Among other things, I learned a lot about hydraulics. I use that knowledge now at Witteveen+Bos on drinking and process water projects. Water is a great subject, because you’re constantly solving puzzles and the relevance for society is big. After all, it’s one of life’s basic needs. But most people don’t realise how much organisation it requires, nor how well organised it is in the Netherlands.’
Camels in the desert
‘On international projects, you very quickly realise that a good water supply can’t be taken for granted. In early 2024, I travelled with colleagues to Oman. We conducted a site visit to a desert with camels. Residential areas were going to be built there. Standing there, it was difficult to imagine that. We were tasked with designing a brand new drinking water network that could be connected to the existing source: desalinated sea water transported across the country through a huge pipeline. The trick was to build the most efficient network possible, featuring as few pumps and pipes as possible. Because the fewer pumps there are, the less maintenance and energy required. And the fewer pipes, the less costly excavation work.’
Kralingse Plas
‘At Witteveen+Bos, I recently started working as a project manager. I was ready for a new step in my career and am happy that I was given the chance. In my new role as project manager, I’m more of a generalist than a specialist. This poses different challenges, like ensuring a balanced schedule and budget. Communication is also an important part. One of our projects is a planned treatment installation to combat blue-green algae in the Kralingse Plas lake in Rotterdam. The mini treatment plant has to make the water safe to swim in. People welcome clean bathing water, but they don’t want to be inconvenienced by a treatment installation. But it has to be built somewhere. That means a lot of coordination and communication with stakeholders. As a project manager at Witteveen+Bos, I enjoy the challenge of creating technical solutions while also safeguarding the interests of all stakeholders.’
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