Wouter van West had worked for many years as chief mechanic and inspector of technical services at shipping company Royal Holland Lloyd’s in Amsterdam.
Lloyd’s mainly sailed its ships back and forth between the Netherlands and the United States.
On those trips, of course, sometimes something broke down on board.
For example, the cooling equipment that had to keep the diesel engines from overheating or seizing up.
Often that equipment was serviced or repaired upon arrival in port.
Wouter van West was one of the people who did that at Lloyd’s.
Gap in the market
The cooling equipment for Lloyd’s ship engines came from England.
In the Netherlands, and certainly in Amsterdam, there were no companies that could repair the equipment.
Wouter van West did have that experience and saw a gap in the market.
In 1923, he started a machine factory in which he could use his knowledge and experience: He specialized in parts for steam engines, piston rings for marine diesels as well as cooling equipment for ships.
Little did he know then that 100 years later, cooling equipment would still be made under his name.
And certainly not what all that cooling equipment would be used for.
‘t Harde, 2023 …
It’s party time!
Van West Koeltechniek exists 100 years.
We have not been making coolers for marine engines for a long time.
We also no longer work from Amsterdam.
We split off from the machine factory over half a century ago and moved to the Veluwe.
Since 1998 we have been making our cooling equipment from ‘t Harde.
New applications of refrigeration technology
Our smart applications are no longer in ships, but in very different equipment.
Equipment that you as a consumer might use every day, equipment that helps keep the country healthy and equipment that makes life easier and more fun.
Tip of the hat
The name Van West Koeltechniek does not immediately ring a bell with everyone.
Still, almost everyone knows an appliance that incorporates our products.
Over the next few months we will be celebrating our 100th anniversary and giving you an insight into what we do and where you can find us.
That way you will get to know us little by little.
And you can say at surprising moments: