A new step has been taken in merging the Cleaning and Sanding Technology units into a single Surface Treatment Department. Most of the equipment in this sector will now be repaired, maintained and certified in Nieuwerkerk a/d IJssel in the Netherlands. Things have got off to a flying start, as the first shipment of Mirka machines repaired thanks to a team effort has already been sent back to customers.

New team working

Machines from the Climate and Cleaning unit were previously repaired in Vlaardingen, but are now being handled together with Sanding Technology. A fully-equipped Surface Treatment Repair Centre has been set up. ‘It’s an exciting time, as we now have a new team of four mechanics, a logistics assistant, and me. Three people at Sales Support are also giving us a helping hand with administration. We’ve been extremely busy during the start-up phase, so we’re getting to know each other quickly,” says Wendy Putters, manager of daily operations at the new repair centre.

All expertise in-house

Our in-house expertise is growing even further ,thanks to the opening of the repair centre. One important reason behind the merger of Cleaning and Sanding Technology is to pool knowledge and experience in an aftersales department. “The mechanics have just finished following a Mirka training course, and have started carrying out repairs. The course was very instructive, and the employees are very eager to get started,” says Wendy. “We’ll probably soon be facing our biggest challenge so far, with 75 to 100 sanding machines arriving every week. That’s quite a task to take on as a team.”

Impact for customers

Registering and handling a defective product in the front office continues unchanged. As Wendy explains, “At the moment, relatively little has changed for customers, and this is an important point at this stage of the project. Customers still fill in the repair form online, and we take care of the rest.” In time, the two forms we currently use, one for Cleaning and one for Sanding Technology, will be combined in a single Surface Treatment repair form. The plan is to implement changes in stages, so that customers gradually get used to the name ‘Surface Treatment’. The marketing team is working on optimising the customer process, and keeping customers updated via My Environment.