Precision from Metal - Value Creation in Perfection
Interview with Rob Paulissen, Managing Director of Doesburg Components B.V.
From casting to ready-to-install component: Doesburg Components B.V. stands for metallurgical know-how, modern manufacturing, and close customer relations. The company produces precisely machined casting components for engines, transmissions, and chassis. As part of the Gietburg Holding, it supplies leading manufacturers in commercial vehicle, engine, and agricultural technology. Managing Director Rob Paulissen discusses the strength of integrated value creation, the use of digitalization and AI - and why sustainable growth always starts with people.
Wirtschaftsforum: Mr. Paulissen, what are the roots of Doesburg Components – and how is the company integrated within the group?
Rob Paulissen: Our story begins in 1995: Doesburg Components emerged from the machine factory Schouwers, which closely collaborated with Gieterij Doesburg. From the beginning, the idea was to unite casting and machining – an approach that shapes us to this day. Thus, we control the entire chain from raw casting to the ready-to-install component. I myself come from metallurgy and know how valuable this knowledge is in a technologized industry. Today, we are part of the family-run Gietburg Holding with Gieterij Gietburg, Modelmakerij Hengelo, Brinks Components, and Fonderie Laval in France. The group has about 550 employees, 200 of which are with us, and generates a turnover of 165 million EUR – of which 110 million is from Doesburg Components.
Wirtschaftsforum: What products do you supply – and in what industries are they used?
Rob Paulissen: We manufacture machined cast parts from iron and increasingly from steel – such as chassis, engine, and transmission parts or casings for agriculture. Besides machining, we also take care of washing, painting, and pre-assembly. The parts range from 100 g to 300 kg, series from 50 to 100,000 pieces per year. As development partners, we optimize components early for castability and machinability. Our industry mix of truck, engine, and agricultural technology creates stability and knowledge transfer. We serve between 20 to 25 customers – including MAN, Deutz, ZF, Claas, Scania, DAF, and Daimler – and focus on long-term partnerships.
Wirtschaftsforum: Where are you active – and what percentage of your business is exports?
Rob Paulissen: Our main markets are Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, France, and the USA. The export share is between 50 to 55%. We accompany our customers from development to production – often years before the start of production – and ensure stable processes, timely deliveries, and clear communication. With new partners, we often grow together quickly, as our flat structure allows for short paths and quick decisions.
Wirtschaftsforum: What makes you particularly competitive – and what do your customers value?
Rob Paulissen: Our strength lies in reliability and proximity to the customer. What we say, we do. We relieve our customers of worries, think constructively with them, and deliver what we promise. Already in the development phase, we stand by their side as a partner to ensure that constructions are castable and economically manufacturable. This results in solutions that work from the start – and relationships that often last for many years. Our organization is open, direct, and flat – anyone can come to me, and I am regularly in production to maintain contact. When there's an emergency, we respond immediately: When a customer’s assembly line was at risk of halting, the replacement delivery was on its way within half an hour. Such actions get around – they create trust and real partnership.
Wirtschaftsforum: Digitalization, automation, sustainability – how do you implement these topics?
Rob Paulissen: Digitalization is an integral part of our strategy – and long a basic requirement to stay competitive. Our internal software team of two developers creates proprietary applications that deliver production data in real-time, thus helping to make processes more transparent and to improve them purposefully. Many of these investments pay off in the long term, yet they secure our future. Automation additionally brings efficiency and relieves our specialists. Sustainability is also important: We use LED lighting with motion sensors, recycle compressor heat for office heating, and continually increase our energy efficiency. More and more customers today demand concrete evidence and documentation – we document this transparently and see it as an opportunity to make responsibility visible. At trade fairs such as the Gießbörse in Germany, we also show presence, and we use social media specifically to attract new employees and to carry our values outward.
Wirtschaftsforum: Where is Doesburg Components heading – and what personally drives you?
Rob Paulissen: We want to continue to grow – with large, yet healthy steps. Key focuses remain automation, digitalization, and the targeted use of AI to better support our customers and make their processes more efficient. The shortage of skilled workers, in particular, shows how important these topics are for the future. I am motivated by the fact that the owners give me a lot of room to further develop the company and implement new ideas. Especially the responses from our employees drive me: When a team successfully completes a project and proudly shows what it has achieved – it’s like with one's own children. You often only recognize the progress when others point it out. That’s exactly what makes this job so fulfilling.