Henk van Hetten: Difference between revisions

Henk van Hetten
Henk van Hetten
Born	23 July 1963; Paramaribo, Suriname
Occupations	Construction contractor; Crawler-crane operator;
Years active	1980–present
Era	Vriend Era
Known for	Founder of Paramarbo
Height	1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)
Parents	Wijnand van Hetten (father); Rosalie Kenswil (mother);
Relatives	Ewald van Hetten (uncle); Rinaldo van Hetten (cousin);
Family	Van Hetten family

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Revision as of 23:21, 24 September 2026

Henk van Hetten (born 23 July 1963) is a Surinamese construction contractor and crawler-crane operator. He founded Paramarbo in Paramaribo on 1 October 1990. Van Hetten continues to operate crawler cranes on the company's projects and took over the Van Hetten family dump site from his father in 2026.

Early life

Henk van Hetten was born in Paramaribo, Suriname, on 23 July 1963. He is the son of Wijnand van Hetten and Rosalie Kenswil.^[1] His father managed the Van Hetten family dump site in Paramaribo, where Henk's uncle Ewald van Hetten worked as a heavy equipment operator.

Van Hetten began helping at the dump site in 1975, when he was 12. He first sorted reusable material and later helped maintain equipment. Wijnand taught him construction work. Ewald introduced him to the cranes and excavators used on the property.

After completing secondary school, Van Hetten obtained a vocational qualification in motor-vehicle mechanics. In 1980, aged 17, Ewald began training him on a used Kobe Steel 10KT truck crane. Van Hetten used it to load scrap and reusable construction material before moving on to the dump site's Kobelco 300-series lattice-boom crawler crane.

From 1981 until 1984, Van Hetten worked as a parcel courier. He moved alone to Rotterdam, Netherlands, in 1984 to gain more construction experience. There he worked for a Dutch construction company on precast concrete piling and steel sheet-pile installation. During his six years in Rotterdam, he completed SOMA training and qualified to operate mobile piling installations and mobile cranes.

Career

Van Hetten returned to Paramaribo in March 1990 intending to establish his own construction company. Wijnand and Ewald continued operating the family dump site and lent him machinery while he arranged his first contracts.

He founded Paramarbo on 1 October 1990. One of the company's first major projects was the construction of private houses in Paramaribo that required pile foundations. Paramarbo later took contracts for small commercial buildings and developed a permanent workforce of 12 employees.

The company bought a used Sumitomo LS-118RH-5 crawler crane in 1996. Configured for pile-driving work, it was the first major machine Paramarbo owned outright. Van Hetten later added a Kobelco CKE800 to the company's crawler-crane fleet in 2006. A Kobelco BM700HD-2 was acquired in 2012 and remains one of the machines he operates on selected projects. Patrick van Hetten has occasionally joined him on construction jobs in Suriname.^[2]

Van Hetten continued using reusable material from the family dump site for construction work. Material suitable for later use was removed from the waste brought to the property and kept for Paramarbo projects. Van Hetten referred to this practice with the phrase "afval is ook goud" ("trash is also gold").

On 10 April 2026, Wijnand retired from daily management of the dump site and transferred the property to Van Hetten. He incorporated the site into Paramarbo as its construction yard. The property continued accepting household waste and construction debris while Paramarbo began using part of it for its machinery and recovered building material.

Personal life

Van Hetten lives in Paramaribo and has never married. He has no children. Dutch is his primary language, while he also speaks Sranan Tongo. He smokes regularly.

Van Hetten drives an orange 2006 Jeep Wrangler that he rebuilt during the year he acquired it. He assembled its three-cylinder diesel engine from modified parts recovered from discarded engines. Van Hetten fabricated the engine mounts and adapted the drivetrain himself, while parts of the interior were lined with scrap-metal panels.

References

↑ "Personal life". Wijnand van Hetten. Vrienden Universe Wiki.
↑ "Career". Patrick van Hetten (UFO mechanic). Vrienden Universe Wiki.

[wijnand-personal-1] "Personal life". Wijnand van Hetten. Vrienden Universe Wiki.

[patrick-career-2] "Career". Patrick van Hetten (UFO mechanic). Vrienden Universe Wiki.

[1]

[2]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 {{Infobox person
 | name = Henk van Hetten
-| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1963|7|23|df=y}}
+| birth_date = {{Birth date|1963|7|23|df=yes}}
 | birth_place = [[Paramaribo]], [[Suriname]]
 | occupation = {{hlist|Construction contractor|Crawler-crane operator}}
-| years_active = 1975–present
+| years_active = 1980–present
 | era = [[Vriend Era]]
 | known_for = Founder of [[Paramarbo]]
-| height = {{convert|1.73|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
+| height = 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)
 | father = [[Wijnand van Hetten]]
-| relatives = {{hlist|[[Ewald van Hetten]] (uncle)|[[Rinaldo van Hetten]] (cousin)}}
+| mother = [[Rosalie Kenswil]]
+| relatives = {{plainlist|
+* [[Ewald van Hetten]] (uncle)
+* [[Rinaldo van Hetten]] (cousin)
+}}
 | family = [[Van Hetten family]]
 }}
-'''Henk van Hetten''' (born 23 July 1963) is a Surinamese construction contractor and crawler-crane operator. He founded [[Paramarbo]] in [[Paramaribo]] on 1 October 1990 and continues to operate machinery on the company's construction sites. On 10 April 2026, his father, [[Wijnand van Hetten]], transferred the Van Hetten family dump site to him. The property subsequently became Paramarbo's construction yard.
+'''Henk van Hetten''' (born 23 July 1963) is a Surinamese construction contractor and crawler-crane operator. He founded [[Paramarbo]] in [[Paramaribo]] on 1 October 1990. Van Hetten continues to operate crawler cranes on the company's projects and took over the Van Hetten family dump site from his father in 2026.
 == Early life ==
-Henk van Hetten was born in Paramaribo, Suriname, on 23 July 1963. His father, Wijnand van Hetten, operated a family dump site in the city. Wijnand's older brother, [[Ewald van Hetten]], worked at the same site and operated its cranes and excavators.
+Henk van Hetten was born in Paramaribo, [[Suriname]], on 23 July 1963. He is the son of [[Wijnand van Hetten]] and [[Rosalie Kenswil]].<ref name="wijnand-personal"/> His father managed the Van Hetten family dump site in Paramaribo, where Henk's uncle [[Ewald van Hetten]] worked as a heavy equipment operator.
-Van Hetten began helping at the dump site in 1975, when he was 12. He initially sorted reusable materials before taking on basic equipment maintenance. Wijnand taught him construction work, while Ewald introduced him to heavy machinery.
+Van Hetten began helping at the dump site in 1975, when he was 12. He first sorted reusable material and later helped maintain equipment. Wijnand taught him construction work. Ewald introduced him to the cranes and excavators used on the property.
-Van Hetten completed secondary school and obtained a vocational qualification in motor-vehicle mechanics before 1981. He never worked professionally as a mechanic. In 1980, aged 17, Ewald allowed him to operate a used Kobe Steel 10KT truck crane. Van Hetten used the crane to load scrap and reusable construction materials. He later progressed to the dump site's Kobelco 300-series lattice-boom crawler crane.
+After completing secondary school, Van Hetten obtained a vocational qualification in motor-vehicle mechanics. In 1980, aged 17, Ewald began training him on a used Kobe Steel 10KT truck crane. Van Hetten used it to load scrap and reusable construction material before moving on to the dump site's Kobelco 300-series lattice-boom crawler crane.
-From 1981 to 1984, Van Hetten worked as a parcel courier because it was the easiest employment available to him. In 1984, he moved alone to [[Rotterdam]], [[Netherlands]], to gain further construction experience. He worked for a Dutch construction company on precast concrete piling and steel sheet-pile installation. During his six years in Rotterdam, he completed SOMA training and obtained qualifications for operating mobile piling installations and mobile cranes.
+From 1981 until 1984, Van Hetten worked as a parcel courier. He moved alone to [[Rotterdam]], [[Netherlands]], in 1984 to gain more construction experience. There he worked for a Dutch construction company on precast concrete piling and steel sheet-pile installation. During his six years in Rotterdam, he completed SOMA training and qualified to operate mobile piling installations and mobile cranes.
 == Career ==
-Van Hetten returned to Paramaribo in March 1990 with the intention of establishing his own construction company. He borrowed machinery from Wijnand and Ewald's dump site while arranging his first contracts. Wijnand and Ewald continued running the dump site separately and did not join the new company.
+Van Hetten returned to Paramaribo in March 1990 intending to establish his own construction company. Wijnand and Ewald continued operating the family dump site and lent him machinery while he arranged his first contracts.
-Van Hetten formally founded Paramarbo on 1 October 1990. Its first major project was a group of private houses in Paramaribo that required pile foundations. The company later began constructing small commercial buildings and developed a permanent workforce of 12 employees.
-In 1996, Paramarbo purchased a used Sumitomo LS-118RH-5 crawler crane configured for pile-driving work. It was the first major machine owned outright by the company. Paramarbo acquired a Kobelco CKE800 crawler crane in 2006. The CKE800 became the crane most associated with Van Hetten's work.
-In 2012, the company acquired a Kobelco BM700HD-2. Van Hetten still operates the BM700HD-2 on selected Paramarbo projects. [[Patrick van Hetten (UFO mechanic)]] has occasionally assisted him on construction jobs, particularly when machinery required field repairs.<ref name="patrick-construction"/>
+He founded [[Paramarbo]] on 1 October 1990. One of the company's first major projects was the construction of private houses in Paramaribo that required pile foundations. Paramarbo later took contracts for small commercial buildings and developed a permanent workforce of 12 employees.
-Before 2026, Paramarbo obtained reusable building materials from Wijnand's dump site. Corrugated metal sheets and structural steel were retained when suitable for construction. Timber and concrete components were also recovered when they remained structurally usable. Van Hetten summarizes this practice with the phrase "afval is ook goud" ("trash is also gold").
+The company bought a used Sumitomo LS-118RH-5 crawler crane in 1996. Configured for pile-driving work, it was the first major machine Paramarbo owned outright. Van Hetten later added a Kobelco CKE800 to the company's crawler-crane fleet in 2006. A Kobelco BM700HD-2 was acquired in 2012 and remains one of the machines he operates on selected projects. [[Patrick van Hetten (UFO mechanic)|Patrick van Hetten]] has occasionally joined him on construction jobs in Suriname.<ref name="patrick-career"/>
-On 10 April 2026, Wijnand retired from management of the dump site and transferred the property to Van Hetten.<ref name="wijnand-transfer"/> Van Hetten incorporated it into Paramarbo as the company's construction yard. The yard continues to accept household waste and construction debris and is used to store machinery, structural steel, timber and other recovered building materials.
+Van Hetten continued using reusable material from the family dump site for construction work. Material suitable for later use was removed from the waste brought to the property and kept for Paramarbo projects. Van Hetten referred to this practice with the phrase ''"afval is ook goud"'' ("trash is also gold").
-Van Hetten's cousin, [[Rinaldo van Hetten]], remained at the property after the transfer. Rinaldo continues to operate the Hitachi WS100 wheel loader on selected days and carries out its maintenance and repairs himself.<ref name="rinaldo-career"/>
+On 10 April 2026, Wijnand retired from daily management of the dump site and transferred the property to Van Hetten. He incorporated the site into Paramarbo as its construction yard. The property continued accepting household waste and construction debris while Paramarbo began using part of it for its machinery and recovered building material.
 == Personal life ==
-Van Hetten lives in Paramaribo. He has never married and has no children. Dutch is his primary language, and he also speaks [[Sranan Tongo]].
+Van Hetten lives in Paramaribo and has never married. He has no children. Dutch is his primary language, while he also speaks [[Sranan Tongo]]. He smokes regularly.
-Van Hetten has a calm and deliberate manner. He speaks and walks slowly and rarely becomes angry. He smokes regularly. At work, he usually wears a faded Kobelco shirt and orange work trousers. Orange is his preferred colour and serves as a personal signature in his clothing and equipment.
-In 2012, Patrick van Hetten taught him to pilot Van Hetten [[unidentified flying object|UFOs]]. Van Hetten occasionally uses the craft for recreational flights around Suriname.
+Van Hetten drives an orange 2006 [[Jeep Wrangler]] that he rebuilt during the year he acquired it. He assembled its three-cylinder diesel engine from modified parts recovered from discarded engines. Van Hetten fabricated the engine mounts and adapted the drivetrain himself, while parts of the interior were lined with scrap-metal panels.
-Van Hetten drives an orange 2006 [[Jeep Wrangler]]. He rebuilt the vehicle during the year he acquired it. Its three-cylinder diesel engine was assembled from modified parts recovered from several discarded engines. Van Hetten fabricated the engine mounts and adapted the drivetrain himself. He also lined parts of the interior with scrap-metal panels.
 == See also ==
@@ Line 62: / Line 58: @@
 == References ==
 {{Reflist|refs=
-<ref name="patrick-construction">"[[Patrick van Hetten (UFO mechanic)#Career|Career]]". ''Patrick van Hetten (UFO mechanic)''. ''Vrienden Universe Wiki''.</ref>
+<ref name="wijnand-personal">"[[Wijnand van Hetten#Personal life|Personal life]]". ''Wijnand van Hetten''. ''Vrienden Universe Wiki''.</ref>
-<ref name="wijnand-transfer">"[[Wijnand van Hetten#Career|Career]]". ''Wijnand van Hetten''. ''Vrienden Universe Wiki''.</ref>
+<ref name="patrick-career">"[[Patrick van Hetten (UFO mechanic)#Career|Career]]". ''Patrick van Hetten (UFO mechanic)''. ''Vrienden Universe Wiki''.</ref>
-<ref name="rinaldo-career">"[[Rinaldo van Hetten#Career|Career]]". ''Rinaldo van Hetten''. ''Vrienden Universe Wiki''.</ref>
 }}
 [[Category:Van Hetten family]]
 [[Category:Van Hetten family members]]
 [[Category:1963 births]]
 [[Category:People]]
 [[Category:Living people]]
 [[Category:Surinamese people]]
 [[Category:Vriend Era]]

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Revision as of 23:21, 24 September 2026

Early life

Career

Personal life

See also

References