Thanks to Demcon TSST, BOIKON's aluminum profiles are traveling the world.

"If you're here, I'm in the new building across the street. Gray on the ground floor, white above? Uh... I think so, but let me check." Over the phone, it immediately becomes clear that Demcon is thriving, with an office building so brand new that purchase manager Rudi Munster (56) has barely had a chance to explore it himself. "I don't come here very often," he clarifies later at the coffee machine. "My work mainly takes place on the other side of the street, where the workshop is located."

We are in Enschede, on a business park wedged between the University of Twente campus on one side and the Grolsch Veste stadium on the other. At Twente Solid State Technology (TSST) — acquired by the larger Demcon in 2018 — they excel in a very different kind of top-level performance: the company builds equipment for atomic layer deposition for university research centers. Rudi explains how the company, like many others in this area, originated from the ideas of a few professors. "Someone comes up with an idea, and if that idea takes off, they're given the space here to set up a spin-off company. In this case, it was a system that generates a very deep vacuum, creating an ultra-clean, uncontaminated chamber. Ideal for nanotechnology research and for vapor-depositing layers. Let me know if it gets too technical, okay?"

From lecture hall to corporate

The story is certainly technical, but also impressive. Although TSST remains closely connected to the University of Twente, the company now supplies research centers worldwide, from the Benelux to far into Asia. "We create a test setup here on the shop floor to ensure everything works perfectly, and then we install it in the same way at the customer's site."

BOIKON has grown alongside them as a supplier, the native of Twente explains. "In a previous life, when we were still smaller — almost hobby-like — we were looking for extrusion profiles. BOIKON stood out among all the suppliers because they could provide exactly the right corner connectors, which required minimal drilling on our part. For the first few years, we only purchased loose components, but at some point, it became quite a labor-intensive task. So, I called Leek and asked: can you also assemble these for us? Their answer: ‘Of course, we do that every day!’ And could they also procure materials from other suppliers on our behalf? That was no problem either. Since then, we’ve been getting almost a complete package from BOIKON. A bit of peace of mind, really."

Laser-sharp

The engineers at BOIKON are now quite self-sufficient, Rudi explains. "They order standard components — what we call stock items — from abroad and then use the TSST drawings. Well, they tailor everything to size and assemble it into our system. Just recently, a university in Denmark wanted a non-standard size. Most frames are, what, 1 meter 70 high? But in this case, you had to be able to walk underneath it. Well, they handled it." Safety also remains a key aspect, especially when lasers are involved. "Almost all of our systems are equipped by BOIKON with enclosed windows so that no one accidentally comes into contact with a laser beam."

Above all, Rudi emphasizes, BOIKON is very good at thinking along with TSST. "Sometimes we have nothing more than a rough sketch, and they look over our shoulders to figure out which materials would work best. We could try reinventing the wheel every time, but there's no point when they already know everything. Siebo Beukema has even visited us for a tour. I always appreciate it when suppliers make an effort to understand the customer." He pauses for a moment. "To be honest, I've never been to BOIKON myself. Lack of time, lack of capacity. Maybe I should make a trip to Leek one of these days to take a look behind the scenes. See if they can offer even more added value in other ways."