By Saanika Sudeep
Over the last month, residents of the AUC dorms found that the heating was not working. This unfortunate incident led to the dorm rooms feeling much colder than usual, making the students face a bleak end to autumn, since outside temperatures were already dropping. The issue lasted a little more than a week, during which several attempts were made by DUWO to fix the system. On Wednesday, November 5th, DUWO sent an email stating that the heating has been repaired. However, many tenants reported not feeling a change in their rooms, and the company has yet to respond to these claims.
The issue of cold dorms can be traced back to the last academic year, during which some buildings in the complex did not have hot water. Back then, DUWO also took an extended period of time to resolve the issue, and the fact that there have been deficiencies in this area before has frustrated some students. However, a spokesperson from DUWO’s technical team states that these two issues are separate: the hot water is powered by the pumps that extract heat from the outside air, and therefore they “are technically separate from the heating system”, so the problems are “not directly related”.
In an email to the residents of the dorms, DUWO explained the reason for the loss of heating. Normally, it is supplied by a pump from a data center nearby. Its malfunction meant that the heat “could not reach several complexes in the area, including ours,” and caused many buildings in Science Park to remain cold. DUWO also clarified that Essent, an energy company based in the Netherlands, owns the pump and oversees the transport of heat to the dorms. An initial attempt to curb the effects of the malfunction was made by the company Heijmans, but proved to be futile. Instead, DUWO decided to rent a temporary heat pump, since a new one could take up to 13 weeks to be delivered.
The student population was unanimously unimpressed – to say they were unhappy with the situation would be an understatement. Those in the dorms described inside temperatures dropping down to 15°C in the mornings, and having to invest in small heaters just to ward off the cold. Among the complaints was also a rapidly circulating question as to whether the residents would be reimbursed for the lack of heating, as many found it unfair to have to pay for a service they did not receive.
DUWO’s official position on the subject of reimbursement is almost as cold as the dorm rooms were in early November: in an interview with Danielle van den Tol, the social manager of the dorms, she said that they could not control the malfunctioning energy pump. Therefore, reimbursement is “not [their] responsibility”. They claim that if anyone should reimburse the tenants of the dorms, it is Essent. If the possibility of being reimbursed for the lack of heating ends up being recognised by either DUWO or Essent, the residents of the dorms will be informed via another mass email. According to the spokesperson, the question has been raised to Essent, and DUWO is waiting for a response. However, tenants can expect DUWO to remain hesitant to compensate the students on their end.
Hopefully, the repaired heating system will continue to work for the rest of the winter, and no more unfortunate encounters with the biting Dutch cold will happen again. DUWO has repeatedly assured the tenants of the dorms that the heating has undergone major maintenance and that they are doing their best to prevent further incidents in the future. The tenants will have to hold them to their word!
The Herring 