With the signatures of Metrohm Applikon and SDK Vastgoed (VolkerWessels), the completion of Mechatronics Innovation Campus Schiedam (MICS) can formally start. Metrohm Applikon is the first company to settle on this future hotspot for the mechatronics industry. The purchase and development agreement for the new business premises for Metrohm is also the start of a new place where collaboration, knowledge sharing, and talent development come together. The campus will have a size of 42 hectares.
SDK Vastgoed is also the developer of Brainport Industries Campus (BIC), which recently fleshed out plans to triple the size of the site. The first BIC complex has been in operation for five years and was opened by King Willem-Alexander. SDK is taking much of its Eindhoven experience to Schiedam. “With the start of MICS, we once again confirm our name as a campus developer, a specialty in which SDK Vastgoed has developed a great deal of knowledge,” says Ferdinand Gremming, director of SDK Vastgoed. “We have proven our ability to make ecosystems flourish. At MICS, too, we are working closely with the ecosystem of business, education, society, and government. With this, we realize an area where everyone has the space to excel.”
BIC 2 to enable the much-needed development of the high-tech manufacturing industry in the Netherlands
According to the initiators, it is about nothing less than the further development of the manufacturing industry in the Netherlands.
Talent pool
Metrohm Applikon BV, part of the Metrohm Group, has its origins in Switzerland. The company specializes in high-quality precision instruments for chemical analysis and is active in the sales, production, and development of analytical process instruments. Within MICS, Metrohm also participates in a sustainable mechatronics ecosystem in which entrepreneurs, the municipality and knowledge institutes cooperate intensively on economic and personal development. The company is one of the boosters of the talent pool within which school leavers can work alternately for six months within one of the participating companies. This gives them at least a two-year job guarantee and the opportunity to further train in precision engineering.
With Metrohm, MICS can make a flying start, according to Gstromen’s colleague Niels Langenhuizen. “This company has long played an important role in the ecosystem of Mechatronics companies, so this offers a dream start for the campus, and with that, it is also a compliment to the hard work of everyone involved.” Metrohm was looking to expand for some time but could not do so at its current location. The company’s plans include more than just new construction. “We also see plenty of opportunities in the campus idea,” says CEO Timoer Frelink. “New construction at this location makes it possible for us to expand, modernize, and also be part of MICS.”
Positive working environment
The municipality of Schiedam is also pleased with the initiatives. “Creating a campus in a green environment, located on the Schie, creates a positive working environment with an attraction for companies and talent,” says Antoinette Laan, alderman for area development SchieDistrict. “Metrohm is already opting for this. A top company in a top location along the main structure of the business park with great potential and value for the campus and Schiedam.”
