“Designing plants logically and as efficiently as possible. That’s what I’ve been doing here since 1997. It’s a matter of being able to solve puzzles. Though you also have to have a feel for it because you have to be able to visualise an entire line. You ensure that all the machines are coordinated with each other perfectly so that the end products are just the way the customer wants them to be.

As a mechanical engineer I get to the bottom of the technique. But you also have to understand the technology properly. What’s more, the systems are constantly getting faster and there is increasing use of mechatronics. So you have to ensure that you keep up to date. Another thing that makes this work attractive are the cultural differences and the different product requirements that result from these. In Italy, for example, chickens are sold in supermarkets with their heads on; whereas that’s not the case in The Netherlands. In countries where labour is very cheap, there is less automation, so you design a slaughterhouse differently.

There is so much that you need to know before you can come up with a good plant layout. So I am closely involved in the sales process. I and the salesperson find out all the relevant information so that we can then make the best possible proposal to the customer.”

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