Reynaers Group: Efficiency and innovation go hand in hand thanks to standards
Last updated:
13/1/2025
Reynaers Group, with main brands Reynaers Aluminium and Forster, has been a major player in the construction industry for decades. The Organisation provides innovative aluminum and steel profiles for construction such as windows, doors, facades and verandas. Customers worldwide rely on Reynaers Group for solutions that meet the highest standards of sustainability, energy efficiency and safety.
Danny Geysels, head of Research & Innovation at Reynaers Aluminium, has worked for the Organisation for nearly 30 years and is a staunch advocate of the use of standards. "Standards are crucial to our work. They help us not only to comply with regulations, but also to ensure the quality of our products and support our international activities," Danny said.
Worldwide, Reynaers Group has more than 2,650 employees who support partners with innovative solutions. Research and development play a central role here. With a team of more than one hundred people, Organisation continuously works on developing and improving their profile systems. "An important part within the development process, is testing our products for aspects such as wind and water tightness, insulation value and burglar resistance. This is done according to strict standards to ensure that our products meet the expectations of customers and legislators," Danny says.
Standards are important not only for product development, but also for continued innovation. "We are constantly looking for new technologies and materials that we can use in our systems. But before we can bring them to market, we need to make sure they meet the relevant standards and certification requirements, such as CE marking," Danny explains. "Standards help us innovate in a responsible way."
One of the biggest advantages of European standards is the efficiency they offer. "We used to have to test our products according to different national standards. For the same test, we then had to travel to different countries, such as Poland or France. That was not only time-consuming, but also very costly," Danny recalls. "Reynaers Campus has one of the largest private testing centers in Europe. Thanks to European standards, we can now do one test, here at our headquarters in Duffel, which is valid in all European countries."
This means not only that Reynaers Group saves costs, but also that processes are significantly more streamlined. "It's a lot more efficient. For example, we can now perform a test in cooperation with a European notified laboratory, and that result is then accepted in all European countries. That saves us an enormous amount of time and money."
Managing standards is an important task within Reynaers Group. Previously, this was done the traditional way, with physical classeurs full of paper standards and a large Excel list in which the various standards were kept. "If someone needed a standard, they had to search the Excel file and then physically go to the right cover in the cabinet. It was a hugely time-consuming and inefficient process," Danny explains.
The introduction of the NBN's online standards portal has changed that in a big way. "The NBN standards portal is invaluable to us and has completely transformed our standards management," says Danny. "Now we always have the latest version of the standards at our fingertips, and we can easily retrieve old versions when needed."
The portal is not only useful for the research team, but is used by various departments within Organisation , such as the quality department and R&D departments at home and abroad. "It is much more efficient and ensures that we always have access to the right information," Danny says.
For an internationally active Organisation such as Reynaers Group, the cooperation with NBN is of great importance. "The fact that NBN offers the available language versions of their standards at no extra cost is a huge advantage for us. For example, our colleagues in Switzerland like to use the German version of the standards, and thanks to NBN we can offer them it without any problems," Danny said.
He also appreciates the prompt and professional support NBN provides. "If we have questions or comments about the platform, they are always addressed quickly. That customer-oriented approach makes all the difference."
Reynaers Group is not only a user of standards, but also actively participates in their development. According to Danny, participating in standards committees offers unique advantages: "A standard developed for and by the industry ensures that we are involved from the first line. We already know what is coming our way in a few years, and we have a voice in the process." Danny emphasizes how important it is for industry experts to be involved in the development of new testing methods, because they can assess whether proposed testing standards, for example, are practically feasible.
The process of standards development goes beyond simply providing input. For example, subsidiary Reynaers Aluminium participated in test cases for new standards, working with other companies and test laboratories to verify that new test methods were realistic and feasible. In addition, this collaboration provides valuable networking opportunities. "You get to know people outside the context of competition, which promotes cooperation and exchange of knowledge with laboratories and other companies," Danny said.
For Reynaers Group, it is clear that standards and innovation go hand in hand. "Standards not only help us comply with regulations, but also enable us to continue to innovate and offer our products worldwide," Danny concludes. "Thanks to the NBN standards portal, we can now do that more efficiently than ever before."
Are you looking for worry-free standards management? Do you want to save time and costs? Then an NBN subscription is the solution for you!
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