My name is Vincent Prins and I am Manager Research & Development at Van der Valk Systemen. Als a manager, I lead the R&D team and am responsible for the product and system developments within our company.
Vincent | R&D Manager
Thanks to the versatility of this position, my working days are varied. The various tasks include leading the team, conducting research and devising and creating solutions. I also make sketches and 3D drawings, develop demos and carry out tests. Furthermore, I prepare reports and ensure that contact with customers and suppliers is maintained. I also take part in standard committees to determine regulations and am in contact with the patent office for our patents. In short, no two days are the same!
Over the years, there have been changes in our work. The programmes and machines we work with are evolving and Van der Valk Systemen is growing. The development of a product is now done in collaboration with several departments and where we used to manufacture and test demos by hand, we now use, for example, the latest 3D printers, climate cabinets, tensile benches and external research firms.
We recently worked on the development of a new flat roof system for Van der Valk Solar Systems. The requirements of supporting solar panels have changed. Through contact with customers, installers, suppliers and knowledge from the standard, we drew up requirements that the new flat roof systems had to meet. Concept were then worked out and the best concept was developed into the new system ValkPro+ Max L.
Developing systems also allows us to tap new markets. For instance, we were asked if we also had a screen system for poly greenhouses, a market in which we were not really active yet. The challenge in development was mainly in the new environment we were working in. A Venlo greenhouse familiar to us has lattice girders to which we attach our screen systems. These lattice are not present in a poly greenhouse so this gave us a nice challenge. The development led to the ValkPoly+ system, with which we can now also supply a screen system for poly greenhouses.
The R&D team is constantly improving current solutions and developing new products and systems. Coming up with a solution and turning it into a marketable product is what I enjoy most about the job.
