A pleasant introduction On 1 July 2010, Wiebe van den Elshout (42) was appointed Director of Andus Group. Together with Tom van Rijn, he is one of the two directors of the group and is responsible for future policy. This concerns a future in which continuity will be further ensured and growth ambitions will be realised.
Teambuilding in true Dutch weather
Wiebe van den Elshout:
I will be more concerned with
lot of people's hands. Everyone
“Andus Group has grown
financial management and
impresses me as being very
substantially over the past
personnel policy. Still, I would
committed. That is extremely
decade. It's a healthy organisation
like to emphasise that I am not a
important for an organisation,
with a turnover of some
numbers fanatic bent on imposing
that’s where its strength often
200 million euros and 900
bureaucracy on the procedures
lies. Finally, I think we make
employees. It’s pretty amazing
here or someone who just looks
beautiful finished products. It’s
how that growth has been
at the costs. This feeling can
great to work for a company that
achieved in such a short time.
rapidly occur when you’re coming
creates tangible, often impressive
On 15 September, some 75
But we have now reached a point
from the world of banking. That’s
projects and products. In
Andus employees got together
where the organisation is so large
why it is good to know that in
short, Andus Group suits me
for an exciting team-building
that you cannot let it depend on
my previous employment, I was
perfectly.”
day. In the Frisian town of
only one person at the top. If
responsible for the ‘business
Hindeloopen, in the morning,
you add to that the fact that we,
banking’ section. That puts you
the group was treated to an
as Andus Group, want to grow
constantly in touch with business
inspirational address by Gerard
further, then it's understandable
and with ‘enterprise’, with
Kemkers, the famous ex-skater
that broadening is sought.”
discovering opportunities and the
and successful coach. Then the
effort to exploit these, rather than
Frisian waters were conquered
Enterprising banker
in rough weather conditions.
“I have known Tom van Rijn
A great day in which it was
now for about seven years from
Strength of the company
once again demonstrated how
my previous job, so we are not
“What I’ve seen so far of
strong the team is that we have!
strangers to each other. I come
Andus Group, I really like. It
from the banking industry,
is a professional, horizontal
but consider myself more of
organisation where decisions
an entrepreneur. So far, we
can be made quickly. Let’s say
have not yet made any official
you have the joys of a small
division of responsibilities,
company but not the burdens
that will come later. It is in
of a large one. I have also
line with the expectations that
already been able to shake a
just the finances.”
W V L S TA A L B O U W E R S •
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G O U D A V U U R VA S T S E R V I C E S •
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ANDUS GROUP SERVING THE INDUSTRY
volume 2 | no. 5 | November 2010
about you AND US A S S E L B E R G S V E N T I L AT O R E N •
HotLine
Plug in and gas out In February 2009, Total E&P Nederland awarded to HSM Offshore the Engineering, Procurement and Construction contract for the K5CU North Sea satellite platform. Iv Oil & Gas is a partner for the engineering. Around a year and a half later, the ‘topside’ could be positioned in the open sea onto ‘the jacket’ that had meanwhile been anchored onto the seabed. A simplified ‘sketch’ of an
height of some 66 metres. The
of water and transported to the
offshore platform: a steel frame-
construction of the topside is a
parent platform elsewhere in
work consisting of four legs is
very complex puzzle, precisely
positioned on the seabed. In this
because of its compactness and
the North Sea. Without anyone being present on K5CU. It is, in
case a construction weighing
its layering. Timing is crucial.
fact, controlled from the parent
800 metric tons and 49 metres
One deck must, in fact, be
platform or from the control
high. This jacket is secured to
completely finished, including
room in The Hague. In order for
the seabed with pipes penetrat-
processing equipment, before it
all of this to happen, there have
ing 52 metres into the seabed
is ‘closed’ by the next deck.
been months of prior testing on
which are filled with ‘grout’.
land. Every cable, switch, pipe,
Then the topside is put onto it:
Delivered complete
meter, etc. is tested. The gas
an ingenious construction, every
Such a platform is already
and diesel generators, lighting
square centimetre of which is
impressive because of its sheer
of the helipad, the fire extin-
used for the efficient extraction
size. But when you consider that
guishing system: everything
and processing of the extracted
it is delivered ‘plug and play’,
must work f lawlessly. Including
gas. In the case of this plat-
that is simply amazing. Once
the kettle in the pantry for the
form, the topside weighs 800
a period of installation and
maintenance crew. Because even
metric tons and is three decks
connection has taken place, the
that is included.
high (17 metres). Ultimately
platform is ready to produce.
the construction reaches a
The gas is extracted, purified
Latest news! HSM Offshore and ABB AB
C-Powerfarshore wind farm on the
lations. The ‘load out’ weight
Offshore Wind Connections
Thornton Bank in the North Sea,
will be some 2,000 metric tons.
have recently reached agree-
about 30 kilometres off the
In February 2011, manufacture
ment for the design and supply
Belgian coast. HSM designs,
commences and delivery will
of a transformer platform. This
builds and delivers the platform
take place in March 2012.
platform will be part of the
including all internal instal-
Course in-house It will not be long before it
already graces many a product.
managers and quality control
which we will yet again place
becomes mandatory under the
And that’s good. It is a recognition
people, struggled through
our procedures critically under
Building Decree to manufacture
of our quality and moreover, every
the four inch thick course
the spotlight. One thing is
steel and aluminium construc-
country in Europe will then be
folder. They are now carrying
certain: once the standard
tions in accordance with the
obliged to approve and accept our
this knowledge further to the
becomes mandatory, we’ll be
NEN-EN 1090-1 and 1090-2
products without being able to
various business units, after
ready for it!
standards. That has a number of
impose additional requirements.
implications for our manufacturing and assembly process. Not
Because we already want to
only are very strict requirements
meet these requirements now,
placed on the materials we use,
a course was held in September
but also on all our work in the
at the head office in Eindhoven
factories and on construction sites.
given by three experts in this
But if we meet all the require-
area. In five sessions - from
ments, then we can proudly
3 p.m. to 8 p.m. - twenty of
say that we deliver CE-certified
our employees, ranging from
constructions: the well-known
production and assembly man-
European mark of quality which
agers to engineers, project
Quick switch at Shell Suddenly, somebody at Shell Pernis raised the alarm: the Cat Cracker-2 had to be taken out of service unexpectedly. Repair it quickly? No, it was decided to bring forward the regular maintenance originally scheduled to take place in six months' time. In no time, the site was provided with accommodation for the hundreds of people who would then have to get to work. Gouda Vuurvast Services also got off to a flying start: the company had been granted the order to install the new fire and wear-resistant coating of the cracker. A Cat Cracker is a system
about twelve metres.
stone. Concrete is nothing by
one's thumb and tapped with a
for the catalytic cracking of
And inside: Gouda Vuurvast
comparison. Finally the ‘donkey
hammer. 300,000 times and up
petroleum products. The large
employees in ‘space suits’
work’ begins, unparalleled
to a great height… Impressive.
molecules of ‘heavy oil’ are
manually demolishing the old
craftsmanship. Each honeycomb
broken into smaller fragments
coating. Inside the cracker, the
must be carefully filled using
by heat, high speed and a
highest possible safety regime
catalyst. In this way, the oil is
is in effect. Next, a process of
converted into different types of
blast cleaning and grinding
gas, high octane petrol or diesel.
of the walls follows. Then the
This is quite an aggressive
inside of the reactor is covered
process taking place in large
with a steel honeycomb profile.
steel towers. The reactor tower
Over 450 honeycombs per
is lined on the inside, because
square metre. When all profiles
otherwise the ‘powdery’ catalyst
are welded to the walls, you’re
would grind away the steel in
looking at about 300,000 ‘holes’.
literally no time.
Then ‘the filling’ is produced at the Shell site in the specially
Filling holes
equipped Gouda workshop.
From the ground f loor, the steel
It is a chemically bonded
reactor cylinder rises to a height
greasy mass that looks like
of some 40 metres. Diameter:
putty. But it hardens tough as
120,000 people on site RijnDijk Steel Contracting has again scooped up a nice order. Commissioned by Strukton Bouw, in 2011 manufacture and assembly will begin for the main steel structure of the public transport terminal roof, the Openbaar Vervoer Terminal (OVT-2) in The Hague. In the words of the trade journal Bouwen met Staal (Building with Steel) June issue: the jewel of the terminal. Some more details from
Open during renovations
to access the site and dimen-
Bouwen met Staal: "For the
Challenging you can certainly
sions are tight. So everything
facelift of the existing terminal
call it. Not only the production
must be planned to the small-
'a box' measuring 120x96x22m
of the main oval columns out of
est detail. The position of the
(lxwxh) with glass roofs and
rolled steel plates and cast steel.
three cranes has already been
façades will be placed on only
And not only the production of
carefully measured up. And
eight principal columns (slim
the 900 metric ton roof struc-
‘very simply’: those cranes don’t
oval and tapered columns with
ture or a total of 780 metric
work in the daytime, because
branchings). Diagonal roof-
tons of working platforms at 15
that would be dangerous for
lines lead travellers to the four
and 19 metres height. Also the
the thousands of people on the
new passageways, resulting in
demolition of the old roof and
ground. So work goes on through-
deformation sensitive parallelo-
the installation Is a gigantic
out the night so as not to be left
grams." Almost enough to make
project. The construction must
empty-handed the next day.
your hair turn grey, but not for
not actually disturb any traffic.
the men of Steel Engineering
The 120,000(!) passengers per
It will be a while yet before
and Contracting: “It is complex,
day must be able to go about
OVT-2 is ready, but then it will
but great fun and challenging.”
undisturbed. That means the
be something really splendid.
bus, tram and train traffic conti-
We can be justifiably proud of
nues as normal during the reno-
such a prestigious project!
vation. In addition, it is difficult Source: Bouwen met Staal 06 2010
Gouda goes deep into the desert Gouda Refractories has very specialised knowledge to hand. It is therefore not so very strange that ‘the big petrochemical giants of the earth’ every so often come knocking on our door in picturesque Gouda. This is always a nice compliment. This time, it’s for an order from GASCO, a joint venture between ADNOC, Shell, Total and Partex based in Abu Dhabi. Tecnimont KT is our principal client for this. They are providing the entire processing line for the removal of sulphur from natural gas. Gouda Refractories is supplying the fireproof lining. Deep in the desert in Abu Dhabi,
Pure customisation
rises to about 1200°C, the inside
engineering are involved before
there are gas fields of unprece-
Because the gas in Abu Dhabi
of the combustion chambers are
production can begin, it is pure
dented production potential.
is relatively high in sulphur,
clad to a thickness of 0.5 metres
custom work, brick by brick.
Whereas previously the extracted
the sulphur is first removed
with high quality fireproof bricks
The first delivery is planned
‘raw’ gas was exported straight-
in so-called ‘Sulphur Recovery
(2,100 metric tons of material).
for August 2011 and twelve
away, the policy has changed
Units’ (SRUs). These consist of
In addition, various types of
months later the project will be
over the last ten years. The gas is
vats up to a diameter of about
fireproof concrete (3,000 metric
completed and can be added to
now further processed into semi-
6 metres and 20 metres long.
tons of material) ensure the
our list of completed projects,
finished and finished products.
At least for this order. That
correct temperature reduction
along with the SRUs already
That means that massive
makes this the largest SRU
for the vats and the chimney.
shipped worldwide to, amongst
chemical and petrochemical
project in the world, consisting
And naturally, this is where
other places, Saudi Arabia, China,
complexes have emerged as well
of four identical ‘SRU-trains’
Gouda comes onto the scene.
Europe, the USA and Canada!
and are continuing to be built.
from the main burner up to
An exceptionally complicated
One of those is Habshan 5,
and including the top of the
task, because it is not simply a
an extension of the existing
chimney. Because in the course
matter of just baking bricks.
Habshan plant.
of processing the temperature
First hundreds of hours of
Magnet conquers Europe A few years ago P&K Rail brought a product onto the market that had been invented in cooperation with VolkerRail: the so-called permanent particle magnet (PPM). The PPM has been patented in the meantime, and has already prevented many a train delay. When train wheels are running
Force of attraction
unnoticed in Europe. In France,
over iron rails, iron filings are
After the PPM had been
Sweden and Denmark, mean-
produced. These filings remain
installed on a number of track
while, PPMs have been installed.
on and around the rails and
sections in the Netherlands,
And to top it all off, the British
points. Sometimes that is not a
there followed years of research
Network Rail approved the
problem, but in track sections
and fine-tuning. With success!
magnet in ‘no time’ for the
with insulated block joints
In some sections of track, the
English railways although they
(electrically insulated joints) it
number of signal failures has
have the strictest admission
can cause a short circuit. When
been reduced by as much as
criteria there. The result: an
that happens, the safety system
90%. And as with all ingenious
impressive order for P&K Rail
thinks that the track section is
solutions, the operation of the
of 1,000 PPMs in the canary
occupied and the well-known
PPM is simple: the magnet is
yellow version!
message comes over the tannoy
mounted next to the insulated
that a delay has been caused
block joint and ‘catches’ the
owing to a signal failure.
f lying metal dust so that the
With the PPM, that need no
joints stay clean. The success
longer happen.
in the Netherlands did not go
HOTLINE IS A P U B L IC AT I O N O F T HE A NDUS G RO U P H o t L i n e a p p e a r s s e v e r a l t i m e s a y e a r. The publication aims at keeping employees, clients and suppliers informed of developments within the Andus Group.
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