Chemical company Envalior and Equans: collaborating from Genk to China and back
Chemical company Envalior and Equans: collaborating from Genk to China and back
When international chemical company Envalior (formerly DSM) was looking for a partner to revamp its extrusion lines in China, it was primarily looking for a party that had already proven its expertise. This is how Equans and its Process Solutions department came into the picture, after a successful similar project at their site in Genk. It became a successful collaboration, which continues to bear fruit.
At the Chinese plant, a renewal of the extrusion lines was necessary. Some materials and components of the existing lines were difficult to obtain, making an upgrade impossible. Renewal was the only logical option.
"When we had to find a reliable partner for the control of the extrusion lines for this project, the Process Solutions team came into the picture quite quickly," recalls Ruud Jacobs, responsible for the Envalior renewal project in China.
"They had proven with a similar project in Genk that they could handle this work perfectly and had set the standard for the quality we were looking for. We then asked them: either you explain to us in detail how the people in China should do this, or you send a team to China to do it themselves. They chose the latter."
From China to a worldwide cooperation
This turned out to be a great move, as this project was the starting point for many other projects in China. Equans has either renewed or built new extrusion lines for all of Envalior's lines in China. Once the project in China was completed, the upgrade exercise was repeated for multiple lines at Envalior's facility in the Netherlands.
The smooth collaboration has since earned Equans a contract for a joint venture with a partner company of Envalior China. Additionally, during the project in China, the Process Solutions team at Equans met a German extruder manufacturer, which has led to collaboration on four international projects, including in Qatar. The partnership between Envalior and Equans has proved fruitful in many ways.
The secret of good cooperation
Envalior and Equans had been working together for many years before the successful project in China, and their collaboration has only grown stronger since then. The secret to their successful partnership could lie in the high standards set by Envalior and Ruud Jacobs.
"We are demanding of ourselves and our partners," confirms Ruud. "We know that they meet our strict criteria, which is why we will think of them first for every new project."
And it is precisely this high standard that Equans excels in, according to Ruud. "Equans has enormous expertise in the management of extrusion lines, and they are also very skilled in the transfer of knowledge and required processes. Moreover, they are very flexible and service-minded. If a problem ever arises, they are always there for us very quickly, even on weekends if necessary. Equans is our preferred supplier for every new project, and they have more than earned that title."
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