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Damen Naval has had a number of important working visits recently. This has included a visiting NATO delegation in addition to Damen Naval organising a practical day for students of the Royal Institute of Engineers’ (KIVI) ‘Defence for Engineers’ course. In both cases, the guests were also given a tour of the Vlissingen-Oost shipyard and the HNLMS Johan de Witt.
Public Affairs Officer Kim Pušić.
For Public Affairs Officer Kim Pušić, these delegations are essential to demonstrate Damen Naval’s operations to the widest possible audience. “Our work activities are very obvious to us, but it is very valuable to share what we do in a good way with people working in the defence industry. You never know when the experiences that they have gained during such a visit will come in handy in their current or future job.”
The NATO visit was a direct follow-up to an earlier visit in November last year. Then we welcomed more than 30 members of the Association of Marine Officers ‘Willem Joseph Baron van Ghent’, the Dutch association of current and retired officers of the Royal Marine Corps. “That was a very successful visit and one of the guests was Mark Brouwer, who is now working at NATO,” Kim says. “He really enjoyed the visit and asked if it would be possible to come back again with a group of his international colleagues from NATO. You can see how that first visit had a knock-on effect. It led to good and valuable contacts and invitations to other events.”
“Our work activities are very obvious to us, but it is very valuable to share what we do in a good way with people working in the defence industry.” Kim Pušić
The delegation with visitors from countries including France, Poland, Italy, Britain, Portugal, Germany, Slovakia and the United States also toured HNLMS Johan de Witt.
The delegation, with visitors from countries including France, Poland, Italy, Britain, Portugal, Germany, Slovakia and the United States, arrived in Vlissingen on a chilly but dry day and were welcomed with lunch and presentations. “It was a really nice visit. They were given a short presentation about Damen Naval and the importance and challenges of international and European cooperation,” Kim adds. “Ric Dekkers talked about the various international projects we have completed or are working on with the countries present. Also, Fer Tummers and Richard Gans, Deputy Commander and Chief Technical Officer of the Johan de Witt, gave a presentation on the MLU after which the group was given a tour of the Johan de Witt.”
A visit by the KIVI’s Department of Defence & Security (KIVI DV) also recently took place. Damen Naval Project Manager Engineering René Meijn is also a board member at KIVI DV and organised the visit as part of the Defence for Engineers course. KIVI DV organises this course to give young engineers a quick introduction to the distinct aspects of defence technology and working in the sector. Within six days of lectures and eight working visits, they get an overview and contacts across the sector.
Project Manager Engineering René Meijn.
“As part of the course, we also give lectures at the KIVI in The Hague, but a visit to the shipyard during one of the practical days is always very useful as well,” says René. “Damen Naval does not often seek publicity and, as a result, many people in the defence sector do not have a clear picture of our work. They may know us as the Ministry of Defence’s in-house supplier but have no knowledge of all our export projects and that we also build abroad. We are a long way from the Randstad area, out of sight, and so these kinds of visits are very worthwhile because they put us on the map in a positive way.”
The students were treated to an interesting day with a presentation by Ric Dekkers of Naval Sales Support about Damen Naval, the projects, the company’s European position and our R&D strategy. Then Dirk Bakker talked about the F126 project and Jeffrey Vader gave an update on the Midlife Update of the Johan de Witt, and naturally, the visitors were also shown around the ship. According to René, the young KIVI DV members make contacts that are essential for their further careers during the course. “We highly value the golden triangle of the Ministry of Defence, the defence industry and knowledge institutes. This course contributes to a close connection between those three pillars.”
During the coronavirus pandemic, the visits were largely put on hold, but now that the measures have been lifted, they can resume. “Usually about seven to ten visits take place a year. These are sometimes large groups from associations or political parties, but they can also be one-on-one visits from a minister or a state secretary,” Kim explains. “The public affairs department is fairly new to Damen Naval, but the dossiers are becoming increasingly political. We have to share the information about our company and our work. The working visits are a very important part of that.”