hotline - andus group - june - 2010
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Hotline - Andus Group - June - 2010TRANSCRIPT
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HotLine about you AND USvolume 2 | no. 4 | june 2010
AS
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FIB
IN
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GF
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VIC
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GO
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A F
EU
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GO
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A P
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GO
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A R
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RA
CTO
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GO
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GO
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HS
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HS
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INT
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INT
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LEN
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LEN
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TAA
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ME
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P&
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RIJ
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RIJ
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“After one year in works planning,
I made the transition to fitter/
welder. Back then, you really had
to be skilled. There was no such
thing as computers. You were
given a scale drawing that you had
to lay on a pipe and then you set
to work. That involved fitting and
measuring, cutting and so on.
Now, the plans are worked out in
the finest detail and the pieces are
all computer cut. But there are still
plenty of challenges as an archi-
tect’s concept is not always easy
to carry out. We always have to
make it anyway, often under great
pressure. And if there’s something
that worries me, it’s the scarcity
of skilled guys. It seems that the
metal worker is a dying breed.”
Making beautiful things“But it is a fine trade. You know,
we worked on the advertising mast
at Schiphol Airport. That’s really
amazing. As soon as you arrive
in the Netherlands, you see some-
thing that ‘our boys’ made. And
when I sit in the theatre of the
Heuvel Gallery in Eindhoven and
see the roof construction, I feel
proud. Anyhow, I’m really proud
that I work here. Seeing how the
company is growing gives me a
good feeling. When I spoke with
Tom van Rijn during more turbu-
lent times, he said: ‘Tinie, it’s like
an old tree. You have to prune it in
order for it to thrive again.’ He was
right, we’re in full bloom.”
ProUd oF ‘oUr boys’
Working together on great
projects
In the last annual report, the Andus Group presented once
again, alongside some excellent figures, a number of pictures of
completed projects. There were also plenty of photographs of
Andus employees. We wanted to emphasise that projects can
only be realised through the continued efforts of our personnel.
Naturally, this also applies to the need for close cooperation
with clients. For this reason, we’d like to hand the floor over to
employees and clients for this HotLine edition. As the running title
in ‘the newspaper’ says: HotLine, about you AND US.
We wish everyone an enjoyable holiday period.
Thanks for all your efforts!
Andus Group Executive Board
Tinie Tijsen set out to ‘do something with wood’. This isn’t exactly
what happened. He attended vocational school and was trained as a
fitter/welder. In 1974, Tijsen joined BNG Steel Construction, which later
became RijnDijk Steel Contracting. He is now the foreman at Mebra
Metaalbewerking.
“In order to understand the situ-
ation, you need to have an idea
of what our plant looks like. We
have three incineration lines that
are each closed down once a year
for major maintenance work. This
takes three to four weeks each
time and costs about € 2 million
per line. That is € 6 million per
year, so a lot of money. Of this
amount, about € 400,000 goes
into the brickwork. Then you
need to know that each day the
furnace is shut down costs
€ 50,000 and that it’s the duration
of Gouda Services’ maintenance
work that determines the length
of the shut down. So there are
enormous interests at stake. The
less often we shut down and the
shorter the production stoppage,
the better it is for us.”
Pick apart contracts or look for solutions“Two years ago, we suddenly had
a problem. We had to shut down
a line for a week and a half when
it had been renovated only 6
months previously. You are then,
as client and supplier, on opposite
sides of the camp. You can choose
to go through the contracts,
look at performance indicators
and start a legal battle. Shall
we, shan’t we? Well, that didn’t
happen. Together with the execu-
tive board of Gouda we came to
the conclusion that the interests
at stake were too great, on both
sides. We combined efforts to
deal with the issue. But it was
one forward thinking action that
proved to be the most significant:
we decided henceforth to work
with a SSG.”
Extending boundaries“A SSG is a Small Smart Group.
We brought together our speci-
alists and those of Gouda to
investigate in an almost scientific
manner what precisely happened
in the furnaces and where neces-
sary to bring in counter-expertise.
Our objective: get to grips with
the combustion process and put
this knowledge into product
innovation or changes to work
methods. Perhaps a different
brick, different mortar, do the
jointing differently. Extend the
boundaries together and together
invest in the future. Look, the
point is cooperation and creating
win-win situations. Having
faith in each other and a single
mindedness about achieving
things. And you can be sure that
great things will grow from that
and have already. We have already
increased our annual revenue
because we no longer have unex-
pected shut downs and less main-
tenance work is required. And
naturally, that ref lects well on
Gouda too.”
things grow when they get attentionAVR in Duiven is a subsidiary of the Van Gansewinkel Group. The company converts waste into energy. For this purpose, it has three incineration
lines that use a large amount of refractory brickwork. Robert Hageman is Maintenance Head of Waste Treatment at AVR. He is happy to talk about
his years of experience with Gouda Services. Some years ago, this relationship came under pressure. But one of Robert Hageman’s mottos is the
title of this article as it is an attitude of open and frank discussion that allows a relationship to survive and even to grow closer.
P&K and asselbergs are relocating
From 1 October 2010, P&K Rail and Asselbergs
Ventilatoren will conduct their activities from a new
location in Nieuwegein. The spacious production faci-
lities will offer greater flexibility to adapt to variations
in activity: from major welding orders to projects that
involve extensive assembly work. The generous and
attractive office space is directly linked to the factory.
And another advantage: the new location is very
accessible from the A2 and A27, as well as by public
transport.
“Our work is getting more diverse
every day. There is, for example, a
clear shift in clients. We used to
work primarily for RijnDijk Steel
Contracting. Today, there are
more and more Andus companies
making use of our expertise. So
we are working on many different
projects at the moment. Our
services are also changing.
We are offering a much more
complete package. From engi-
neering drawings to works
planning, you can bring us into
every stage of the process or for
the process as a whole. Actually,
it’s about providing a service
within a project - we go the whole
distance. Serving the industry is,
in fact, an appropriate term.”
Doing puzzles as a job“Then you have the variety
that comes with my job. It is
commonly believed that our work
has become easier over the years.
Since automation has progressed
so far, there is the false impres-
sion that you only need to look at
a screen to spot a problem. Push
a button a couple of times and
the construction is altered. Well,
that’s not how it works. There
are three factors to consider for
any structure. Firstly, it has to
be well designed. But that’s not
the only factor. It also has to be
really practical to construct. You
have to be constantly aware of
what is going on at the site, and
what might go wrong. A hundred
girders that vary only a fraction
from each other is a serious
problem. And then there is the
third factor: the financial aspect.
One tries, of course, to make a
construction as cheap as possible.
But that’s not always about using
the least weight of steel. You also
have to account for efficiency
in production and assembly. All
these factors add up to a process
that remains similar to doing a
giant puzzle, in spite of all the
wonderful computer programmes.
You remain dependent on your
ingenuity and creativity. And that’s
what makes the job so great.”
aUtomation cannot rePlace hUmansSjaak van Egmond began his career with the Andus Group with a drawing internship at Lengkeek Staalbouw.
He went on to finish his studies for the Eurocodes at RijnDijk Engineering, where he has now been employed as
a structural engineer for two and a half years. He has a good dynamic going for him, in other words.
new name For Fib
FIB Industriële Bedrijven
has evolved into a truly
international enterprise.
Around two thirds of
production is shipped
to foreign clients with
orders coming in from, for
example, the U.S., Canada,
Venezuela, China, Japan
and Australia. FIB has
changed its name to FIB
Industries to emphasise
this international profile
and simplify communi-
cations. Now it can move
forward with even greater
confidence.
FUlly aUtomated PacKing system at goUda
Gouda Refractories produces refractory concrete in
Geldermalsen. The process involved the manual
filling of bags that were then stacked on pallets.
This work method was very f lexible but in some
respects completely outdated. In September, two fully
automated bagging machines and a robot palletiser
were put into service. This investment allows for a
more consistent and cleanly packed product, higher
productivity and considerably improved working
conditions.
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In the Netherlands, we decided to contract out larger orders in order to protect market parties. The difficulties
inherent in this have become apparent to everybody, particularly when it involves projects that take years. Jasper
Tils has been project manager for the ‘Prince Bernhard’s Locks’ for the Rijkswaterstaat (Directorate General for
Public Works and Water Management) since 2008, and here looks back at working with HSM Steel Structures.
UnbUrdening the client
Major maintenance on a vital waterway completed
The Prince Bernhard’s Locks in Tiel are the gates
from the Amsterdam-Rijn Canal to the river Waal.
In 2007, HSM Steel Structures was commissioned
as general contractor to substantially overhaul the
locks and to ensure that the lock gates meet the
latest requirements to withstand high water. Both
the ‘wide’ and the ‘narrow’ locks received new gates.
Further, the gates were converted from electromag-
netic power to hydraulic. The locks are operated from
a completely remodelled control room. The celebra-
tory reopening took place in June.
“Let’s be honest, the start was not
easy. There were a few reasons for
this. Besides the usual issues that
you expect, such as additional
design requirements, regulations
that change in the meantime or
setbacks that you encounter at
the offset, there was the change
to the purchasing philosophy
at Rijkswaterstaat (RWS). RWS
was actually always a ‘participa-
tive client’ before. We felt like
we were, and in fact we were
actually right at the heart of the
project. But we all know the story
of ‘more efficient government’.
This affected RWS too. So we are
taking more of a back seat with
projects and expect our clients to
take care of things. If we take a
step back, the other party needs
to take a step forwards.”
Doing what you promise to do “This resulted in some confusion
in the beginning, especially since
the contract was non comprehen-
sive. What is whose responsibi-
lity now? What are the financial
implications? There was debate
and relations were strained.
But this can also show you how
strong a relationship really is.
Trust survived as HSM always
delivers quality and substantive
commitment. We sat down toge-
ther and made agreements about
all the issues. This was good. You
saw the drive to pull it off, the
no nonsense, can do mentality
of HSM. The positive attitude.
If we have to work eight hours,
twelve or sixteen, we handle it:
we deliver on what we promise.
And this is almost always
achieved. It does mean that we
can’t always have an overview of
progress. Can you see that this
can be really odd? Especially seen
in the light of ‘unburdening’ us
as client and the difficulties that
this entails for tendering work.
Process management and process
skills will play an increasingly
important role. This is where the
diverse skills will be found in
the future. I am pleased with the
outcome achieved and see HSM
as an expert and strong partner.”
Fantastic order For goUda reFractories
The Hindalco concern,
located in India, is one of
Asia’s largest aluminium
producers. Hindalco placed
an order with Gouda
Refractories BV to deliver
all the refractory bricks for
the construction of new
anode baking furnaces at
the Mahan and Aditya smel-
ters. Over a period of over 1.5
years – until March 2012 –
no less than 30,000 tons of
material will be shipped to
India. Gouda can, in part,
thank winning this order
on their leading position
(technologically) in the
anode furnace sector.