Looking back at 2021 by Managing Director Jos Derijk
This past year has once again been an eventful period, in which the COVID crisis continued to dominate the news. Nevertheless, Marcelissen looks back on this busy year with great satisfaction. We have welcomed four new employees and no fewer than nine interns into our company, each with their own specific knowledge, experience and talents. Together, we are able to continue building our mission to ensure that all our machines are and remain top quality.
Together, we have sold over a hundred machines this year, including several full processing lines. We did not only sell these machines in the Netherlands and surrounding countries but this year they have been transported worldwide to 19 different countries, including Egypt, South Africa and the United States. So, unlike most of us, our machines have been able to travel worldwide during this COVID crisis. This whole operation of course requires a lot of energy, causing us to drink no less than 14,400 cups of coffee and tea together this year. We hope all will be back to normal next year, but even after all those cups, it feels like reading the tea leaves.
Besides our daily work, we have also been busy developing our company in line with the latest trends within the sector. This year, for example, we have introduced the first concrete steps regarding Servitization and we have also created a roadmap towards Industry 4.0. Within the engineering department, we have started with a new PDM software package and we have also further developed our machines, including the optical sorting machine that can now also process unpeeled potatoes. In addition, we recently started to exhibit this machine in a VR environment. This way, you can literally see yourself in and around the machine.
We have also been quite busy on a social level. First of all, we have entered a long-term sponsorship deal with the local athletics club called Scopias. Here, we will primarily sponsor the talent team to enable them to put themselves on the map, not just nationally, but also internationally. Furthermore, we also did a lot with our Marcelissen team. We held a photoshoot with all the employees, just look at those handsome faces at the bottom of this message! We also organized various get-togethers and activities, when it was possible, and provided our employees with sportswear to help them stay healthy, especially in these turbulent times.
All in all, 2021 was another successful year for us and I am already looking forward to next year. One thing I know for sure is that together, and with our customers, partners and agents, we will once again set to work full of courage, motivation and optimism.
I wish everyone happy holidays and a happy and especially healthy 2022.
With heartfelt greetings,
Jos Derijk
Managing Director
