Remco’s passion for metal engineering began in his first year of secondary school when he was introduced to CNC turning and milling for the first time. From that moment on, he knew for sure: this is what he wanted to keep doing. And so he did. Now, at the age of twenty-seven, we celebrate Remco’s ten-year anniversary at DKH. To give Remco some extra recognition, we asked him about his journey within DKH.
You started at DKH when you were seventeen. Can you tell us how you ended up here?
“After finishing high school, I started here with a summer job. I already knew back then that I wanted to work in machining technology.”
Did they immediately show enthusiasm about you at DKH, leading them to offer you the opportunity to follow a training program?
“I came up with the idea myself. I know that I learn better in practice, so I immediately asked if this was possible at DKH. Fortunately, they were positive about it. At that time, DKH was collaborating with a school in Cuijk, but I preferred to go to Eindhoven because I saw a better future for myself there. We discussed it, and ultimately they agreed to my choice for Eindhoven. I then quickly started a two-year MBO level 2 training program, where I attended school for six weeks and worked for six weeks. After that, I pursued MBO level 3, where I worked four days a week and attended school one day a week. It took me a total of 4 years to complete levels 2 and 3.”
What do you enjoy most about working at DKH? Because you don’t just stay somewhere for 10 years without reason.
“What I enjoy most is the family-like atmosphere. Everyone gets along well here. Of course, there are occasional disagreements, but that happens everywhere. Additionally, DKH has provided me with opportunities all this time, even when things didn’t go well. They simply said that it’s okay for me to take a bit longer. From that feeling, I’ve always said that I want to keep working here because I can truly be myself and do my own thing.”
Have you made friends here as well?
“It’s not like we hang out together every weekend, but it does happen regularly. The bond with colleagues here is just really good and enjoyable.”
Could you describe a typical workday?
“For me, the day starts with preparing the machines. I have a machine that I usually work on, but sometimes I take over the work from a colleague who’s absent. It’s mostly assignment-based work. Once that’s done, I move on to setting up and if I have any spare time, I try to spend it on programming. It’s quite varied, but sometimes it can get a bit hectic.”
What has changed during your time at DKH?
“I’ve seen the company grow enormously. In the beginning, it was just a small building. Now we have two separate buildings because we’ve really outgrown the space.”
DKH is heavily focused on automation. What do you notice about this yourself?
“I’m not directly involved in it myself, but I have helped out at times. You see how specific production can be, especially when it comes to a large series, say 10,000 pieces. Then you’re glad that a robot is doing that work because manually loading and unloading all of that is no picnic. When I first started working here, I had to do that manually sometimes, and it feels like the series will never end.”
Is there anything you would like to convey to someone who would like to apply here?
“Above all, just be yourself and don’t overestimate yourself. During work, you quickly find out what you can and cannot do. Additionally, I’ve learned here that I shouldn’t stress when something doesn’t work out, but staying calm and asking for help is the best solution. Sometimes I can be a bit stubborn and want to solve it myself. But they’ve really taught me here that I should just ask, because in the end, it also saves time.”