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Friday, February 14, 2025

“Turnkey automation in barn and greenhouse prepared for increase with Berkvens on board”


In 2020, Berkvens Greenhouse Mobility was acquired by Taks Dealing with Methods. Arie Meeuwissen, CEO of the latter firm, believes now could be the time to inform us a factor or two about it. “We needed to go turnkey with Taks Dealing with Methods, each in barn and greenhouse automation. Then you are able to do two issues: both develop all of it your self or purchase an organization.” So, in the long run, they determined to go along with the second possibility.

After taking up Berkvens, which only a 12 months earlier had moved into the brand new premises Arie is exhibiting us round, all the manufacturing facility was transformed. “We tackled the inner processes with a purpose to produce lean. Furthermore, we had to make sure that we may provide all our 26 international locations with methods, whereas within the Berkvens period, solely 4 international locations had been provided from this manufacturing facility. In spite of everything, every nation has its personal electrical schematics, pipe rail sizes, and so forth.”


Arie Meeuwissen.

Turnkey vary
After that conversion and a variety of innovation, the total Taks Dealing with Methods vary is offered for greenhouse automation and turnkey initiatives. “We now have tubular rail wagons, harvest wagons, crop care wagons, AGVs, however we additionally construct bumblebee hives right here, for instance. These are hives that shut robotically at night time to stop the bumblebees from flying at night time in an illuminated greenhouse. Then you can begin spraying, and within the morning, the bumblebees are then allowed out once more.”

Arie continues his itemizing with the whole pepper options supplied by Taks Dealing with Methods, container methods for cucumbers, and spraying robots. “Truly, we’ve got all the things it is advisable to run a greenhouse – all the things you want for crop care, harvesting and processing, and packaging.”

The Taks Dealing with Methods vary is bought immediately by the corporate. As well as, the Berkvens vary is offered by means of sellers. “We at the moment are increasing that vendor community for Berkvens globally. We’re noticing inquiries from many international locations about dealership alternatives.”


The well-known scissor trolleys are additionally useful for private use.

Full bundle
Berkvens’ merger with Buitendijk-Slaman, which was additionally acquired by Taks Dealing with Methods, has additionally contributed to with the ability to ship that full bundle. “Each corporations proceed below the identify Berkvens Greenhouse Mobility. At Buitendijk, we construct ‘specials’ and likewise a variety of service, and right here at Berkvens, we construct a lot of the new bundle.”

Modular machines and manufacturing spurt
Challenges additionally got here with the takeover, Arie explains. “A serious problem was: how do I get modular machines constructed as shortly as potential that may additionally match all markets? And now the large problem is the manufacturing spurt developing. Now we’ve got to get the individuals collectively to start out making all the things. We additionally skilled this at Taks Dealing with Methods. Once I took over that firm, turnover was 4 million, and now, eight years later, it’s 40 million – ten occasions as a lot. And within the coming years, that is solely going to develop.”

Staying afloat in a troublesome market
In relation to new greenhouse development, issues haven’t been the busiest lately. However, they’ve managed to carry their very own nicely at Taks Dealing with Methods, primarily because of conversion orders, says Arie. “For instance, greenhouse conversions from tomatoes to cucumbers. And as well as, eighteen months in the past, we developed a completely computerized harvest processing line for strawberries, full with refrigeration and all of the trimmings.”


Berkvens Greenhouse Mobility makes a foray into decorative horticulture with its rose truck.

Worldwide
One other windfall for Taks Dealing with Methods is that the corporate is internationally targeted. “If there was a dip within the Netherlands, we may flip to Australia or Japan, for instance,” he says. Nevertheless, Arie additionally sees much less nice developments outdoors the nation’s borders – in North America, for instance, the place traders are at the moment a bit extra hands-off.

Wanting forward
What does the longer term appear like for Taks Dealing with Methods and Berkvens? “I hope we are able to then put away stunning turnkey initiatives, through which all the things is built-in, however at a a lot larger stage, with all R&D. Take, for instance, our cooperation with Octiva, which has enabled us each to broaden our product vary significantly and take one other step larger available in the market.”

The R&D to which Arie refers is principally targeted on saving labor. That would be the motto within the coming years. “In 5 years’ time, you’ll have much more machines and fewer palms at work. And the initiatives are getting larger and greater, which can also be a problem for us. How do you get all these large initiatives linked within the manufacturing facility with out leaving gaps between them? That would be the large problem, not just for us but additionally for the greenhouse builders, who’re more and more confronted with giant initiatives.”


Greenlift 3000: the hydraulic scissor trolley outfitted with two middle wheels i.c.w. two swivel wheels.

For extra info:
Berkvens Greenhouse Mobility
Florapark 34, 5721 VH
Asten, the Netherlands
Tel.: +31 (0)493 670087
information@berkvensgm.nl
www.berkvensgm.nl

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