Diverse projects, priority tasks

With numerous value-creating projects, the Nyíregyháza-based „KE-VÍZ 21” zRt. has enhanced Hungary's built heritage over the past year. Without claiming to be exhaustive, the company has highlighted a few significant investments that excellently showcase the wide spectrum of KE-VÍZ's business lines. We hope to report similar successes this year as well.

Ice Age

The family business has strong ties to the Nyíregyháza Zoo, as many of the attractions at the renowned Sóstó Zoo created by KE-VÍZ. The Ice Age Interactive Animal Show was opened in May, using modern technology to guide visitors through the animal world of the polar regions.

As we have reported in several project articles, the largest rural zoo project in Hungary to date, the facility will showcase the life of animals from the ice ages, the causes and consequences of the Ice Age and the atmosphere of the Ice Age nature in indoor and outdoor spaces. The building complex, which uses interactive elements, was constructed by the company as general contractor on an area of more than 10,000 square metres between the main entrance and the north-west gate of the zoo. One of the most interesting parts of the Ice Age Interactive Animal Show is the flume ride (an artificial stream in a gorge, navigable by small boat).

Road improvements

Ke-Víz has been a key player in the construction industry in eastern Hungary for more than three decades. Another major investment completed in 2024 was in Hajdú-Bihar County: in April, the latest phase of the development of main road 33 was completed: in connection with the road investments related to the development of the North-Western Economic Zone in Debrecen, this time the 2×2 lane expansion of main road 33 was completed between the connecting road marked 3316 and the industrial development area over a length of KE-VÍZ 2010 metres, and also constructed a new roundabout junction and developed the Balmazújváros junction.

The Sámsoni Road, Debrecen's north-eastern access road, handles a huge amount of traffic, as it is the only route for the north-eastern agglomeration to reach Debrecen city centre. The road's capacity was no longer sufficient to handle the increased volume of traffic, so expansion was the only solution. In 2022, a comprehensive road renovation project was launched, carried out by a consortium formed by Debreceni Mélyépítő Holding Kft., "KE-VÍZ 21" zRt. and Zemplénkő Kft., Sámsoni Road will be expanded to 2×2 lanes in two phases over a total of approximately 3 kilometres of the inner-city section: these are phases 5 and 6 of the development, according to their numbering. The current investment is phase 5, which will be followed later by phase 6, the final phase, during which the junction with Kassai Road, which connects to main road 4, will be rebuilt and the road will be passed under the railway.

High-tech industrial park

The experts at KE-VÍZ are currently working on several large projects: an industrial park with unique facilities in Hungary industrial park in Nyíregyháza, which is unique in Hungary. The southern industrial park of Nyíregyháza will be built in several phases, with the first construction work being carried out by the Mészáros és Mészáros Zrt. and „KE-VÍZ 21” zRt. consortium and NYÍR-WETLAND Kft.; KE-VÍZ will also build roads and sewers as part of the project. We last wrote about the project in August, which is expected to be completed in the spring of 2025 – after which the county seat will be enriched with the most developed industrial park in the region.

University of Tokaj and Centre of Nagykálló

In the second half of the year, we also reported on two major projects undertaken by KE-VÍZ's structural engineers: the Tokaj-Hegyalja University building in Sárospatak is being renovated under the company's general construction, where a new dormitory and sports centre will also be built, thus creating a small student centre in Sárospatak. The centrepiece of this, the 3,200 m² building of the former Teacher Training Institute, will be preserved for future generations for many decades thanks to the work of KE-VÍZ.

In November, we reported that the construction of the Kállai Double Event and Conference Centre in Nagykálló Kállai Kettős Event and Conference Centre in Nagykálló was progressing excellently: the building, constructed by KE-VÍZ, will become the true centre of Nagykálló in terms of culture and infrastructure. The contractor took over the work site in December 2023, which will be developed on the site of a building that had already been demolished by then. Since then, thanks to the BIM implementation model, which is continuously updated to reflect the current status, the complex has been built with exceptional construction efficiency. The operators will also benefit greatly from the parallel „BIM implementation model”, as they will be able to use accurate plans covering every detail of the building to locate the source of any problems that may arise.

In March, we reported that prestigious award. His exemplary career in the construction industry has thus earned him a high-ranking award, as the text of the certificate of the Knight's Cross of the Hungarian Order of Merit states that Antal Bencze received the award from the President of the Republic in recognition of his decades of professional dedication as the head of a leading company in the Nyírség region and his multifaceted support for the cultural and social life of the Nyíregyháza region. Of course, alongside the György Inczédi Lifetime Achievement Award and the Entrepreneur of the Year Award, which he received in 1994, this award also took pride of place in the company's display case.