Date post: | 17-Mar-2016 |
Category: |
Documents |
Upload: | andus-group |
View: | 216 times |
Download: | 2 times |
AN
DU
S G
RO
UP
SE
RV
ING
TH
E I
ND
US
TR
Y
volume 1 | no. 2 | December 2011
AS
SE
LBE
RG
S V
EN
TIL
ATO
RE
N •
FIB
IN
DU
ST
RIE
S •
GO
UD
A F
EU
ER
FE
ST
(DE
UT
Sc
HL
AN
D)
•
GO
UD
A R
EF
RA
cTO
RIE
S •
GO
UD
A V
UU
RV
AS
T B
ELG
IUM
•
GO
UD
A V
UU
RV
AS
T S
ER
VIc
ES
•
HS
M O
FF
SH
OR
E •
HS
M S
TE
EL
ST
RU
cT
UR
ES
•
LEN
GK
EE
K S
TAA
LBO
UW
•
P&
K R
AIL
•
RIJ
ND
IJK
cO
NS
TR
Uc
TIO
N •
Most of you know that I am an
enthusiastic sailor. The similari-
ties between sailing and work are
striking. In sailing the circum-
stances are constantly changing so
that you are constantly changing
the direction of the sails. You
have to make sure you have set
the best course. Setbacks have to
be overcome and when you arrive
in the harbour, you feel fantastic.
In business, conditions are also
constantly changing. Economy is
like a wave rising and falling and
in recent years one crisis deve-
loped into another. Companies
that are able to adapt adequately to
these changing circumstances are
the winners of tomorrow. As long
as you have a clear vision and have
set the right course.
At the end of the year, the harbour
is coming into our sights again.
I am able to look back at the
results that we have all produced
in 2011 with nothing but satis-
faction. The figures are not
yet completely ready of course,
but we can already say that the
turnover for the whole group has
increased considerably and that
we can be proud of the results. In
this edition of Andustry news we
give centre stage to our staff: the
force behind our company. We
give you the opportunity to make
the acquaintance of a number of
employees who have been chosen
at random. We highlight their
passions and their dedication to
their jobs as well as a little back-
ground to these people. Wonderful
stories that are full of surprises.
I take this opportunity to wish you
all a merry Christmas and a very
happy New Year. I am convinced
that we will succeed in surviving
less economically favourable times.
I have full confidence in our future
and I foresee a favourable wind for
our company. I cannot think of a
better way to sign off.
Tom van Rijn
CEO
FIRMLY AT THE HELM AND FULL STEAM AHEAD
“When we have to carry out maintenance work
during a production stop, we hardly set any
boundaries for ourselves ... We just go for it. We
join our forces in a tightly knit team in order to
sort out the job. If I need some of our workers
on a Saturday night, they are there, even though
they may be off. But it’s about much more than
just working. We are also there for each other
in our private lives, in good times and bad. This
sense of camaraderie is tremendous.”
Shepherd“My alarm clock goes off at about five o’clock
and an hour later I am at work. By then I have
mostly already read the night shift reports and I
start to set up the roster for the day shift. They
start at seven o’clock. Then I am busy all day
‘rounding up my sheep’ and making sure that
the evening shift can take over efficiently. At
around half past six in the evening I head home
again … I am not allowed to stay on the >>
COMRADES THROUGH THICK AND THINDanny Palemans (45) is project manager/account manager at Gouda Vuurvast Belgium. He joined the company in 1989 as a warehouse assistant and
then worked his way up through the company. He is currently working at a large maintenance job with Total Oil Refinery in Antwerp. A job of approxi-
mately four weeks, where works continue six days a week and 24 hours a day. Danny enjoys this intensive “pushing the boat out” and the team spirit.
>> site for more than 13 hours at a
time!”
A bit of ADHDA tough day you might say. But
then you don’t know Danny yet:
“Depending on my training sche-
dule, I will then ride home on my
bike which takes me around 1,5
hours. On other days I go running,
around 15 kilometres … I am busy
preparing for my next triathlon
actually and I have to train every
day. That’s how you learn what real
hard slog is about. I recently had a
day when I didn’t eat enough and
I hit the wall. You find yourself
10 kilometres from home and you
have to go on. You know, one day
I decided, at the age of 42, to do
my first marathon (42 kilometres).
And I did. Nowadays I do one or
two a year. I am also training for a
number of different triathlons in
places like Mallorca or Lanzarote.
Taking a week’s holiday at the
same time. Brilliant. Although I
do sometimes say that when I’m
50 I’ll start slowing down. The
ladies at work are pretty concerned
about it. What will happen when
someone who is so active is
suddenly indoors all day long. But
that won’t happen. I am not made
for the quiet life.”
“Yes, really. Sometimes I’d really
like to go back there for a while.
As far as that goes I’m a bit of a
narrow-minded specialist, I can
really get pleasure out of a nice,
smooth piece of welding. I started
my training doing automobile
technology and we were sometimes
given welding lessons. That’s when
I thought: Geronimo!! That’s when
I switched to ‘metal’. And I’ve
never looked back or regretted my
choice. It’s just a shame that there
aren’t more women ready to take
this step.”
A little time away“But I really love my job doing
works planning. It’s a job that I
would never have been able to do
if I hadn’t spent time working on
the f loor in the factory. I know
exactly what can be made on
which machines. And then there’s
another factor … I also spent a
bit of time working for another
company. In 2004 I really wanted
to do technical drawing work. I
did that for two years and I came
back here in 2006. I was given the
chance and challenge of setting
up an efficient and effective works
planning system. And I do believe
that the experience I gained doing
technical drawing work actually
put me in good stead for this job.”
Solving puzzles“Nowadays, I start work when the
drawing office is ready with their
work. I transfer the files to our
works planning software package
and I decide which parts go to
which machine. I then prepare the
parts lists and order the materials
required. The right files are then
transferred to the right locations.
For the sawing machines, the
profiles have to first be ‘nested’ in
the standard material lengths and
I have to work out the best way of
producing them. It’s really great
because I want it all to be split up
as efficiently as possible so that
there is as little waste as possible.
And steel is really, really hard.
Lots of angles and sloping shapes?
Then you have to ensure that all
the same corners are ‘nested’ into
each other. And then there’s the
machinery: you might normally
have to do something on one
particular machine, but what if
it’s busy … What do you do then?
It may seem simple when you see
it on paper, but believe me, trans-
lating a pack of drawings like this
into an efficient production run is
no mean feat.”
Exciting“I’m not such a puzzle solver at
home, where I like to settle down
to reading: thrillers in the main!
Not that I have such a lot of time
for it though because I work 40
hours a week and I have a 3-year
old son. He needs a lot of time
and attention. But I’m lucky to
be able to combine my work with
my home situation. Grandma and
daddy are there to help out thank
goodness. Plus I have a lot of
freedom here in terms of working
hours. When things are quiet, I
sometimes leave early, and when
things are busier … Well, then
we just have to work late, don’t
we? It’s not a big deal. I am in a
great place and I enjoy my work
enormously. And now that we
are part of RijnDijk Construction
everything runs like a well-oiled
machine. The partnership with
RijnDijk Construction is really
going well and things are a lot less
hectic, there is more structure in
the work f low. That’s good news
because it means I can be more
efficient with my materials!”
A TOUGH LASS IN A TECHNICAL WORLDRana Verhoeff (34) has been working for RijnDijk Construction
Noord in Schagen since 1993. She started working here as an intern
during her training as a construction worker/welder. For a long
time, she was the only woman in the workshop. An experience that
has proven to be very useful today in her role as a works planner. It
is a time that she sometimes longs to go back to …
“That’s one of the very positive
aspects of Andus Group: perfect
safety statistics. They are comple-
tely embedded in us. But when
you work with other people, you
sometimes find that they are not
as precise about personal safety
measures as they should be. Then
it’s very simple. They have to leave
the building site. I have to be able
to guarantee everyone’s safety.”
Proud of the projects Richard is now supervising a
project at Aleris Aluminium in
Duffel (B), the so-called WABS
buildings. “It’s a great project.
We are responsible every single
aspect of the job, including the
civil part. Excavations, foundations,
the 1,500-ton steel construction,
f looring, E&I, sprinkler installa-
tion, you name it. A whole puzzle
where you have to keep an overall
view of everything, be able to make
the right decisions and check
everything three times over. But
I think it’s great. I am definitely a
real project person. Building some-
thing in ten months’ time and then
moving onto the next project. It’s
fantastic don’t you think? Today
there’s a piece of bare ground and
in no time at all you’ve put up a
beautiful, completely new building.
And I helped to build it.”
Hard work“It’s pretty hard work of course. I
am in my car at half past five in
the morning and I get home at
six in the evening. But working
a nine till five job is not for me
anyway. I was spoon-fed this
attitude from very early on. My
parents had a bakery. So, when
I was young I witnessed them
working really hard. I learned
that you have to give your all, that
you have to dedicate yourself to
your work. That’s when you earn
respect and you get opportunities.
And I was given opportunities and
I grabbed them with both hands.
In 2000 I started as a mechanic
at RijnDijk Steel Contracting. I
learned the profession from an
older colleague. That’s the only
way. Have you ever actually seen
an enormous hydraulic platform
in a training course? No, you have
to learn how you work for that
kind of platform by doing it. Over
the years I have worked on some
wonderful projects in Germany,
Ireland, Spain, and Sweden. So
I had years of experience in lear-
ning things and staying abroad.
And now I have worked my way
up to construction manager and I
can go home at nights. And that’s
not bad either.”
“Before I started my metal trai-
ning, I worked for a while in the
building sector, but that didn’t
do anything for me. That’s when
I started welding, and yes, that’s
absolutely my thing! To create
something from a drawing, find
the right way of doing something
well, creating a beautiful piece of
welding. It’s difficult, you have
to have a kind of feeling for it I
think. And apparently I have that.
Because I am the best in my class
and I have even been selected for
the VakkanjerWedstrijden (annual
professional competition for tech-
nical students). I will be competing
with 285 other young men and
women from the Netherlands for
a place in the final. The best three
can go through to the International
Skills Competitions, EuroSkills and
WorldSkills for instance, the world
championships so to speak. That
would be amazing.”
Studious“I have to say that I have learned
a lot here, particularly from Ton
Schouten, who has just retired.
But I have only been in training
for five months and I have already
completed almost all of my practical
assignments. That means that I will
be able to finish my training early.
And then I want to go further. MIG
welding, G6, Electrode welding
level-4. I want to be able to master
it all. The bigger and more difficult
the job, the greater the challenge,
the more I like it. Such a great
profession. But I mustn’t get overex-
cited. Actually I prefer to stay in the
background. I think you have to be
able to prove things first, before you
start boasting.”
A REAL PROJECT MAN AND SCREAMING TYRES
WORLD CHAMPION TO BE?
For Richard van Gelderen (37), site supervisor at RijnDijk Construction Zuid, things sometimes can’t go quickly enough. Risks? Yes, that’s just part and
parcel of it. But, not to worry, he’s talking about his passion: Formula 1 racing. What an amazing show! “When you are standing on the side of the
circuit, the adrenaline just rushes through your body …” On the construction site however, Richard can’t run any risks at all. Safety is his main priority.
Roy Mandersloot (18) joined P&K Rail two years ago as an assembly
worker. For the last year he has been working for Asselbergs
Ventilatoren as a construction worker/welder. Roy has a ‘BBL’
apprenticeship. This means that he goes to school two days a week
to the Gildevaart ROC Midden-Nederland. He gets the rest of his
training on the shop floor. But although he is still in training, Roy
has already set the bar pretty high: he wants to become the best
welder in the Netherlands.
Sjoerd has been working at
Gouda Refractories since 1988.
A lot of his colleagues have also
been working in his department
for more than ten years. They are
hypnotised by refractory concrete:
“It is an amazingly beautiful and
complicated material that never
stops surprising you. We never
stop learning here. Every single
day. And we are also constantly
looking at how we can make
improvements. How can we do
things more intelligently and
better. It’s really like a kind of
kitchen, where professionalism
and creativity are the essential
ingredients.”
Primitive conditions“The things that fuel my drive
are: autonomy, freedom, creativity
and talent. In the years before
working for Gouda Refractories I
travelled throughout Europe for
an American engineering agency
and built furnaces and hot dip
galvanising lines. That was when
we didn’t yet have blackberries or
laptops. When you couldn’t even
organise a conference call. No,
we sometimes had to ask for an
international call via the switch-
board. That’s when I learned that
exact and detailed preparation is
half the job done and I learned
what it means to have to come up
with a solution on the spot.”
Flying and landing hardThese characteristics are present
in Sjoerd’s private life as well.
“I always wanted to f ly. And the
cheapest and most practical way
of doing that is paragliding. So,
I did that for years. I have done
at least 200 f lights, but I was
forced to stop. During a f light on
Madeira that I obviously hadn’t
perfectly prepared, I crashed and
broke my back. I was actually
very lucky, because I lived to
tell the tale and didn’t die. But I
would still recommend paragli-
ding to anyone. It is amazing!”
A young man’s dream“My other great hobby is my
old Donkervoort S7, my Lotus
7. I bought it in 1979 from Joop
Donkervoort himself as a DIY kit –
he was working from a wooden
shed in his back garden in those
days. I think I was one of his very
first clients. It was a challenge at
the time. Everything was supplied
loose in boxes and I had to work
out for myself how everything
fitted together. Even though I had
paid a serious amount of money
for it. But, it was a young man’s
dream. And you have to make
these come true!”
Sjoerd de Vries (60) is head of the Prefab department of Gouda Refractories in Gouda. He is proud of his ‘own shop’. This is where high-quality
products are made that can’t be pressed, such as different types of refractory bricks that are too big or too complicated, where anchors or frames
have to be worked into or where only a few pieces are required. It is also a development platform for the laboratory. A close-knit club of people
who are apparently mad about refractory concrete.
YOU HAVE TO MAKE YOUR DREAMS COME TRUE
“Life in Romania was dreadful.
We had nothing. We lived in
constant fear, you couldn’t talk to
your neighbour for fear that they
were in the Secret Service.
In 1984 I decided to escape with
a friend, leaving my wife and son
behind. We got a long, long way.
But five metres from the Austrian
border we came upon a cordon of
Ioan Szekely (56) is team leader in the production department of FIB Industries in Leeuwarden. On 3 November of this year he celebrated his
25th anniversary with the company. So many years of loyal service is always special. But for Ioan, it had an even greater significance. This anni-
versary was also an anniversary of his freedom. Because in 1985, a 30-year old machinist Ioan Szekely – Romanian Kayak champion in the 500 and
1,000 metres and premier division handball player – fled his country and Ceausescu’ s reign of terror. After a great deal of hardship he was finally
accepted in the Netherlands. His first job in freedom: production worker at FIB Industries.
JUST THINK ABOUT HOW RICH YOU ARE
“My greatest challenge so far?”
There is silence for a moment.
“Yes, sorry, but I don’t think in
terms of challenges and pitfalls.
I like it when things are compli-
cated, if they are complex and if
they are large-scale. And in that
respect I am in absolutely the
right place. But to call that chal-
lenging? It’s just really great work.
Because it can also sometimes be
tense. Will I succeed in getting
everything done in time? Will
we make money out of it? These
questions are essential in my job.
Because when the purchase order
is signed, things are often far
from being crystal clear. That’s
when the adventure begins.” Okay
Gijs, we won’t call it a challenge.
A jack of all trades“Yes, my work is very varied,
very hands-on. Sometimes I’m
a project manager, sometimes I
am a tender manager, and then
again I put on my deputy mana-
ger’s hat. Or you might find me
on the top of a platform taking
measurements. And what I like
best of all? The people. The people
who work in our company, the
clients, subcontractors, suppliers.
Just name it. They all differ in
the things they want and demand
from us. We supply fantastic
products of course and that’s
important. But the work is always
carried out by people. And that is
an important aspect that needs to
run smoothly.”
Nice workAnd if you ask Gijs about memo-
rable projects, a couple spring
immediately to mind. And they
confirm his subconscious focus
on the people aspect: “The Clyde
Q4C platform. Just brilliant.”
Why? “Fabulous relationship
with the client. Everything went
perfect, but particularly because
we did an extraordinary job with
a very large number of people.
Or the Bernhard shiplocks. This
job may not have run as smooth
as we might have liked, because
we had serious discussions with
our client... But in the end we
managed to sort it out and we
got a lot of pleasure out of of this
project. And then of course there
is a small personal success story …
a movable bridge ‘somewhere’ in
the Netherlands. It was a tender
with an architectonic design.
I made a quick sketch myself
and submitted it. And I won the
tender. Together with a retired
architect we defended the project
pro forma before the Amenities
Committee and it worked out
fabulously. A great job because
the municipality gave us the ultra-
simple comment: ‘Just do it. The
bridge has to work and it needs
to look like it does on the design.’
That was it. When someone calls
on your professionalism and has
confidence in it – it’s a really
rewarding way to work.”
Gijs Kaashoek (44) started work at HSM in 2000 as an engineering manager. He has been director of operations and deputy manager for six years
now. His job? It’s very varied. And his private life? What he loves most is his family life, running along the beach and cooking. “No, I’m afraid I
don’t collect cuckoo clocks. I just love peace and quiet …” And that is exactly what he exudes. You don’t drive Gijs mad.
CALMTH, WORKING WITH PEOPLE AND A QUICK SKETCH
soldiers: we had set off an alarm
somewhere. We were sent back
and ended up in the prison as trai-
tors. Fortunately an amnesty law
was passed not long afterwards.”
Slave work“In 1985 I made a second attempt
to escape. This time I ended up
in Yugoslavia – in prison again.
I was locked in a cell together
with 60 other Romanians. It
was terrible. From morning to
late in the night we worked like
slaves. All because we wanted our
freedom … But, to cut a long story
short, we were finally recognised
by the UNHCR as refugees. A
committee from the Netherlands
comprising a psychologist and
people from the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs and the Ministry
of WVC came to assess us. It was
like a discussion to apply for a job.
40 of us were invited to come to
the Netherlands. The specialists.
On 11 February 1986 I landed
in Schiphol and was taken to
the refugee centre in Apeldoorn.
Everything I owned was packed
into one plastic bag.
Keeping the balls rolling“I started integrating into Dutch
society, but I wanted to do some-
thing! >>
Vincent van Dinter (28) has only been working at HSM for four years, but he already has a whole career behind
him. From his first internship in Norway (“the coldest winter in 40 years”) to works planner, from project engi-
neer (Gaz de France) to construction supervisor and now construction manager. He’s clearly got the wind in his
sails … And that also gives Vincent the chance to be one of the few remaining active millers in the Netherlands!
PLATFORMS AND MILLS HAVE TO KEEP TURNING
An
du
str
y n
ew
s Is
An
An
du
s G
rO
uP
Pu
blIc
AtIO
nA
nd
ustry n
ew
s ap
pe
ars se
vera
l time
s a ye
ar. t
he
pu
blica
tion
aim
s at ke
ep
ing
em
plo
yee
s, clien
ts an
d su
pp
liers
info
rme
d o
f de
velo
pm
en
ts with
inA
nd
us G
rou
p.s
ed
ItOr
IAl c
OM
MIt
tee
Kr
Is r
OO
IjAK
Ke
rs
lInd
A d
AM
sn
Iel
s w
IbIe
r
lA
y-Ou
t An
d P
rO
du
ctIO
nb
ur
eA
u H
Ow
ed
ItOr
IAl A
dd
re
ss
be
uK
en
lA
An
117
56
16
Vc
eIn
dH
OV
en
An
du
s Gr
Ou
P bV
eInd
HO
Ven
/ tel. 04
0 - 211 58 0
0
Asselb
erG
s Ven
tIlAtO
ren
bV
nIeu
weG
eIn / tel. 03
0 - 246 95 01
FIb In
du
strIes b
Vleeu
wA
rd
en / tel. 0
58 - 29
4 59 45
GO
ud
A Feu
erFest (d
eutsc
HlA
nd
) Gm
bH
wIllIc
H / PA
rsA
u (w
OlFsb
ur
G)
tel. +49
(0)215
4 88 87 0
0
GO
ud
A r
eFrA
ctO
rIes b
VG
Ou
dA
/ tel. 0182 - 59 14 0
0
GO
ud
A V
uu
rV
Ast b
elGIu
M n
Vw
IjneG
eM / tel. +
32(0)3 - 326 57 0
0
GO
ud
A V
uu
rV
Ast ser
VIc
es bV
GO
ud
A / tel. 018
2 - 59 14 00
HsM
OFFsH
Or
e bV
scH
IedA
M / tel. 010 - 427 92 0
0
HsM
steel stru
ctu
res b
Vsc
HIed
AM
/ tel. 010 - 427 92 00
lenG
KeeK
stAA
lbO
uw
bV
HO
OG
VlIet r
t / tel. 010 - 416 16 44
P&K
rA
Il bV
nIeu
weG
eIn / tel. 03
0 - 246 95 92
rIjn
dIjK
cO
nstr
uc
tIOn
bV
eInd
HO
Ven
/ tel. 04
0 - 246 72 28
“Yes, I have had an enormous
amount of luck here. A fabulous
company with a great mentality
where everyone is committed to the
people who have to do the real, heavy
work. Extremely business-like and
practical, but with a strong bond
between us. It’s no surprise therefore
that we have a sort of HSM motor-
bike club here. Each year we go for
a week-long tour through France,
Ireland, Italy, England or Scotland.
Looking at beautiful things and
getting to know each other better.”
What stress!“It’s good to take a moment to relax,
because there is sometimes a certain
amount of necessary stress that
goes with the job. After you have
built such a stunning platform for
instance, there is always another
phase following on its heels. And
that’s perhaps the best part. The
transport to the North Sea and the
installation. You have 24 hours to
get the platform up and running
safely so that the helicopters can land
on it, you have to make sure all the
lights work, etc. Everything has to
be connected up and tested. That’s
pretty hectic. There is not a single
minute to stop and breathe. Its go,
go, go. Pretty exhausting. But you get
an enormous kick when a monster
like this, out in the middle of the sea,
works exactly the way it should.”
A great piece of heritage“So, it’s just heaven when I can go
to ‘my mill’ during the weekend.
A corn mill in Puttershoek that
dates back to 1836 and is one of
the 1,100 mills still in existence in
the Netherlands out of an original
11,000. I am the manager of this
mill and every Saturday you will find
me in the mill. It all started actually
when I was 11 and I visited a mill
in Maasdam with a friend. I hung
around, gave them a helping hand,
and learned how a mill worked.
When I was 16, I started training
to become a voluntary miller and
when I was 18, I passed the test.
I was allowed to operate the mill
myself. But, I had no mill of my
own. Until I came to Puttershoek.
After an application procedure with
the foundation that owns the mill, I
was able to start. I have been doing
it for ten years now and it’s fantastic.
I am busy renovating the mill and
restoring it as much as possible to
its former state. I am always busy
working outside on it and I love
being out in the elements. But I also
find it very important to be keeping
a part of tradition alive, a tradi-
tional craft. Something we should
never lose. Mills are our roots, the
economic engine of the Golden Age!
That’s why I am a member of the
Board of the Guild of the Voluntary
Millers. In order to generate enthu-
siasm among more people and
to help them with their training.
But we should take note: there are
more mills standing still in the
Netherlands than there are that turn.
And that’s a terrible shame!”
>>
Because I had played handball in
Romania, I asked if there was a
handball association. Yes. I was
able to play with Achilles and we
immediately became champions.
Leeuwarden was then ready to
take on our group with A-status.
We were given an appartment
and were able to apply for an allo-
wance. In the evening I studied
Dutch because I absolutely
wanted to be able to speak the
language. I had started applying
for jobs – I have still not received
a reply from most of the compa-
nies I applied to – and I travelled
to and from Apeldoorn for my
handball. My travel costs were
paid. Until the Hellas ’57 asso-
ciation from Leeuwarden heard
about me. I was invited to do a
test and I transferred to them.
There I met someone who put in
a good word for me at FIB. And
that’s when my freedom really
began. And I was able to bring my
family over.”
Moving“All in all I was given a new life
25 years ago. I want to forget the
first 30 years. The Netherlands
and my colleagues at FIB have
given me a wonderful welcome.
Dutch people are very helpful in
all respects. But they perhaps do
not realise just how rich they are.
My mother still lives in Romania.
She is 87. She has been to the
Netherlands twice. The first time
I took her to the supermarket
and she couldn’t stop crying. It
was as though she had arrived
in paradise. A whole store full of
things! And so many different
types of cheese. But that’s not
what this wealth is all about. It
is the freedom to think and say
what you want, to go and stop
where you want, to live the way
you want. That is what being rich
is about.”