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Van Raam produces uniquely special needs bicycles and specializes in tricycles, transport bikes, scooterbikes, wheelchair bikes, tandem bikes, double rider bikes, and low step trough bikes (also known as comfortbikes). Each model is also available as an electric bike (Pedelec).
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Niels: “I got a great opportunity. You don’t get that everywhere”
Niels Lettink has been working at vanRaam since 2019. He started as an intern during his study in Industrial Engineering and Management. Six years later, he is a master planner in the Supply Chain department. “We make a product that is used everywhere. It enables a way of life for many.”
How does vanRaam move you?
“My specialization was logistics, and I conducted research in the warehouse. One of the conclusions was that the current systems were no longer sufficient. After that, I was asked to oversee the implementation of a new warehouse management system after graduating. That gave me a really great opportunity. You don’t get that everywhere.”
“After overseeing that implementation, I moved up to master planner. The previous master planner was taking on a different role within the company. Then my manager asked if I wanted to step into the position. And I did.”
“If you show that you want to grow, you get the support you need. Last year, I did a personal development course. I hadn’t even considered it myself—it was suggested to me: ‘Would you like to do this?’ It was a nine-month program, paid for by vanRaam and during working hours. That made me feel valued.”
What impact do you make with your work?
“What I love most is when people come to us who haven’t heard of vanRaam before. Then I say, ‘Keep an eye out over the next few weeks: if you see a three-wheeled bike, there’s a good chance it’s a vanRaam.’ Then, a few weeks later, they come back and have seen vanRaam bikes everywhere. Once you’ve been here and know what we do, you start seeing us everywhere.”
What gives you satisfaction in your work?
“I have a lot of freedom now. If I think tomorrow I want to do things differently—way B instead of way A—I can try it. No one will say, ‘What are you doing?’ We just try something new. That makes work really fun. I’m constantly encouraged to improve things myself and be proactive. Otherwise, I’d have much less motivation. Then it would feel like an obligation. But now it’s genuinely fun to come to work.”
“I see my colleagues more than my friends. So it’s important to me that I can come to work with a smile, knowing it’s a pleasant environment.”
I see my colleagues more than my friends. So it’s important to me that I can come to work with a smile, knowing it’s a pleasant environment.
What fun things do you do together?
“On Friday afternoons, we often have a beer together. That’s a lot of fun. You sit with colleagues from Sales, Service, Finance, and whoever else is around. Everyone can join. We also have a cycling event: the vanRaam Cycling Tour. A colleague designed two routes, 60 and 80 kilometers. You end up cycling with someone you normally never work with. And with the guys in the warehouse, we kick a ball around during the lunch break. In my own department, we also have the Supply Chain Toto. We predict football match results. Whoever predicts the worst result has to bring cookies the following week.”
What do you do now as a master planner?
“If we expect to build 100 bikes, we obviously need parts for those 100 bikes. In the Supply Chain Planning department, my colleague and I ensure that the right materials are in the right place at the right time, and that assembly and production know exactly when to build which bikes.”
“By planning well, we keep delivery times for dealers as short as possible. Every year, we improve a little. In 2023, delivery times were around six weeks. In 2024, closer to five weeks. Now we’re moving toward four weeks—even though we’re producing more bikes each year. So we make more bikes, and they’re ready faster.”
How do you experience collaboration with colleagues?
“If there’s a problem, it’s not ‘you have to fix it, you caused it.’ No, it’s ‘okay, something happened, how do we solve it?’ It’s always ‘we’ or ‘us.’ It’s very easy to make connections here. Doors are always open. Everyone is accessible, and colleagues are open to innovation.”
“For example, I have colleagues who’ve been here 15 or 20 years. When I came up with a new way to pick orders and store inventory, I had to explain it. If you can show what it brings to colleagues, no one says, ‘We’ve always done it this way, so we’ll stick to it.’ No, we just try something new. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. Everyone is open to that.”
Is there a culture where people embrace innovation?
“Yes, definitely. I think at vanRaam, we work hard to make things as easy as possible for our employees by developing digital systems that simplify work. Think of the digital drawings that assembly workers have on the floor. With this automation, we’re ahead. And we do a lot ourselves. It’s part of our vanRaam culture that we like to do everything ourselves. I mean, we build a bike from start to finish entirely in-house. We weld the frames ourselves from raw material to finished product. We paint the frames ourselves. We even bought a 3D printer. Having everything under our own control is part of our culture. That way, we can react quickly to changes.”
Being a student at vanRaam
Do you really want to participate and learn as a student? At vanRaam, you are a full team member, your fresh perspective counts, and you are encouraged to simply try. Discover more about being a student at vanRaam.
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