The love of earthmoving equipment is in this family's blood

With a history dating back to 1959, the company can now count itself as one of the best-known companies in the international market for rental of earthmoving machines. Van Tunen BV from Beverwijk began as a construction company founded by Jaap van Tunen.

We speak with Yvonne van Tunen, commercial director at the company and granddaughter of Jaap van Tunen. "What once began as a construction company was taken over and expanded by my parents Jan and Carla in the 1980s. Soon the number of machines increased and so the love for earthmoving machines was born. My parents were not people for "the round about the church" and decided to look across the country's borders. First in Belgium, then in Germany and then worldwide. Today Van Tunen BV operates for 80% internationally and 20% nationally. We have even had several branches in the Middle East," she opens the conversation.

Big in port operations and dredging contracts

"The size of our company and the number of machines increased rapidly. We work worldwide, as mentioned above, and are known for our port activities, think of expansions, new construction and sand replenishment. We are also often entrusted with special dredging assignments because of our expertise and deployability. We work with large equipment from the water and on land, machines that we equip according to the needs that exist within a project," continued Yvonne.

All of the company's activities are coordinated from Beverwijk. "That is easy to organize from the Netherlands, almost all jobs are dredging related. In Dubai, we cooperated on the Palm Islands, for Deme, Boskalis and Van Oord, among others. We also cooperated on the Das Island project in Abu Dhabi. In addition, we have been involved in Barrow Island in Australia," Yvonne lists. "In projects of this nature, we make extensive use of specially adapted machinery, specifically geared to the work there. The machines are modified by ourselves in our workshop in Beverwijk. Then the machines are disassembled for transport and shipped to the work site."

Works Houtribdijk.(Image: Richard Heerschap)

Rental with and without crew

Those who rent from Van Tunen can do so with or without a crew. "What almost always comes along is good technical support, by means of one or more experienced mechanics. Good technical maintenance is the most important thing for continuity on projects. That is of course priority number one with our client. In addition, it is good for the project and of course the preservation of our machinery. We rent everything including a complete workshop if needed. You can choose a full service option with us, knowing that we can completely relieve the client," said Yvonne. "When we look at current domestic projects, you will find us at projects such as the Nieuwe Sluis Terneuzen, Houtribdijk and the RijnlandRoute (commissioned by Vries and van der Wiel). The main part of our assignments may be abroad, but we are and remain an archetypal Dutch family business."

Specialization in underwater demolition

Van Tunen BV also specializes in renting out the right equipment to perform underwater demolition work, working together with strong partners to handle any underwater job. "These partnerships not only ensure a successful end result, but also provide our customers with the very best offer, in terms of price and expertise," explains Yvonne.

Third generation at the helm

Yvonne works with her two brothers Rob and Bart in the business, making her the third generation at the helm. "We took over the business from our parents Jan and Carla in 2013, when we were just crawling out of the valley of the economic crisis. Fortunately, we are now reasonably back to pre-crisis levels. The nice thing is that although my parents transferred the business to us, they never really said goodbye to the business. My mother works part-time in the business and my father still walks around Beverwijk every day. This also makes it pleasant for our customers: we are a company brimming with "old knowledge," but with a "youthful outlook. We are still growing and speak the language of today, with the knowledge and expertise of years."

Where does Van Tunen BV want to be in five years? Yvonne answers, "Then we want to be just a little bigger than we are now. We want to be a strong addition for main contractors, with an emphasis on innovative solutions. To deliver even more customized machines than we already do and to have an answer to every issue that comes along. Van Tunen BV does not have the ambition to become the biggest player, but the one with all the expertise. And, very importantly, with pleasure at work. For ourselves, for our customers. Let us be that small, intimate and close-knit family business where you can go for a cup of coffee, but also for that monstrously large machine!"