Which laser machine should I have?
We would be happy to show you your material processing without obligation. At our place or on location.
Eric Slotboom
Operation Director
Van Keulen Interieurbouw was founded in 1944 as a carpentry and woodworking company. But now they are experts in interiors and shop design. Van Keulen started as a family business and it still is today. We spoke with Joop van Keulen, the director of the company.
He tells us that they are, among other things, responsible for the design of all Jumbo stores in the Netherlands. But in addition to the supermarkets, the company is also responsible for the design of other businesses such as clothing and shoe stores. “But we also furnish showrooms for well-known car brands such as Ferrari, Mercedes and Jaguar”. Van Keulen is also the market leader in the design of libraries. “We can do everything in-house from design to final interior. So we can deliver the complete package”
Investments and developments
Joop says that they are actually constantly innovating and improving. He constantly invests in new machines and new developments so that they can continue to make everything in-house. When a problem arose with the capacity of their current CNC machines, which are mainly used to process wood, they looked at other technologies. “Our production manager came across a laser for plastic that could also process wood at a trade fair. And then the choice for a laser was quickly made.”
“Thanks to the laser machine, we can offer a little bit extra, what someone else doesn’t do yet.”
The added value of the machine
The wide variety of materials that can be processed is ideal for Van Keulen. “It is used for cutting plastic. But we have already discovered many other things with it. For a number of customers, we have also done beautiful engraving work on raw wooden boxes. This way, you can offer a different presentation to a customer. Thanks to the laser machine, we can offer a little bit extra, which someone else does not yet do.”
Joop indicates that they are constantly discovering new possibilities of the laser machine. “You can use it to make very nice exact components that no longer requires ay finishing, as we were used to with milling and sawing. The product comes off the laser with high quality, which is a great advantage for us.”
Therefore, Van Keulen bought the laser machine to speed up the process. Since no post-processing is required, they can make all products faster. And because of the various possibilities of the machine, they can offer their customers something extra.
The daily use
At Van Keulen we also spoke with Eric Smit, the manager of the plastics department. He uses the BRM Open Bed 150300 every day and tells us more about the products that are made with the machine. “We produce a lot of sandwich boxes for supermarkets and we make them from acrylic. That acrylic is cut with the BRM laser machine. The advantage is that everything is immediately polished: so, there is less rework and more speed.” Eric indicates that they also engrave a lot of mirrors nowadays. They didn’t have that option before, but now with the laser it’s a piece of cake. “Our customers find the engraving work particularly interesting and it is very popular. And we couldn’t do that before.”
Thanks to the laser machine, the plastics department at Van Keulen is no longer dependent on other departments. Previously, they were dependent on the CNC department and the work preparation. Since they can now do everything themselves, the process has become a lot more efficient. Another advantage is that they now need a lot less material. “With a CNC machine, everything machines and that does not happen with a laser machine. That saves a lot of material, and therefore money. And we can nest everything exactly in such a way that we actually have very little waste.”
The choice for BRM
Eric is very pleased with BRM’s service. “The service was great! If we have a question, we are professionally assisted. And if something is wrong, a technician immediately comes by.” Good service was therefore an important part in the decision-making process for the purchase of the machine.
Another important part was the price-quality ratio, which is very good according to Eric. “We also looked at a competitor of yours, but it was way too expensive. Perhaps five times as expensive as a BRM laser, so the choice was an easy one. Because basically, the BRM machine does exactly the same.”
