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Lijmacademie enters partnership with high-tech manufacturer ASML

Lijmacademie, a successful and fast-growing company based at Gate2 for over eight years, has been working intensively with Veldhoven-based chip manufacturer ASML for 2.5 years. Director and founder Arnold Knottnerus: “Besides our standard courses, we also offer all kinds of specific, tailor-made side streams. Like on working with metals, or in particular focusing on the use of epoxy adhesives. This way, we match the needs from ASML as closely as possible.”

We already spoke to Arnold about the Lijmacademie. Then he told us about the training courses his academy offers. From intensive training for a specialist engineer who makes designs to basic training for people on the shop floor who carry out the production process. Training courses take place scheduled at Gate2, or on request at a company. And so now the specific training courses for ASML are being added. Arnold: “The past 2.5 years we were completely full. And for the next six months too, all the training weeks are already full.”

UNIQUE AND INDISPENSABLE CERTIFICATION

By the way, this is not only due to training for ASML’s own employees. Brushing up on knowledge in the field of adhesives and adhesive bonds is also badly needed for suppliers of the chip manufacturer. “And you’re not just talking about companies in the Netherlands, but also in the United States, Malaysia and Japan, for example.” That Lijmacademie’s courses are so popular with ASML and its suppliers has everything to do with certification. In fact, Lijmacademie is a training partner of the renowned Fraunhofer IFAM in Germany, and the course provides international certification. So what the Lijmacademie offers here is also certified in Europe and around the world. Proudly: “And the fact that we can offer that here is quite unique.”

Certification is – when it comes to working with adhesive bonds – indispensable. After all, once two parts are joined together, you can no longer tell whether the joint is of good quality. So somehow you have to be able to predict in advance that what you are delivering is of the desired quality. “If you know that for sure, then you can certify your process. And for certification, it is important to have control moments in all steps of your production process. Staff training is an indispensable part of this.”

HYBRID FORMS OF TRAINING

Things are going well for Lijmacademie. That doesn’t mean, by the way, that Arnold hasn’t noticed anything at all from the corona pandemic. “In the beginning, it was a huge blow. We no longer gave training courses at all at that time. But soon we started looking at opportunities to put the training courses in a hybrid form.” Some of the training could very well be done online, it turned out. But for another part – the practicals that the training really couldn’t do without – still had to be on-site in the laboratory of Lijmacademie. “We therefore did the training courses in smaller groups. And in the practical classroom, we placed plastic screens so that participants could work there safely.” The beauty of those smaller groups, Arnold says, is that you can give people even more attention. So the quality of training actually went up because of the smaller groups. Lijmacademie also heard this back from participants. “Currently, we still use the guideline of a maximum of eight participants. Unless there is no other way. Then we can possibly expand to 12.”

INTERNATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES

What does the future of Lijmacademie look like? “At the moment, we are focusing on purchasing equipment to continue to meet ASML’s specialist demand.” Arnold cites activities that are usually carried out in a so-called clean room as an example. “These activities focus, for example, on using planetary centrifugal mixers to mix glue or on doing hardness measurements on cured glue products.”
All in all, Arnold looks back on successful years. In 2021, the number of participants in the training courses even doubled. In the coming period, he plans to expand with more rooms. For now, he will definitely stay at Gate2 for that. “Especially from Veldhoven, the location is very easy to reach. Most people come to Rijen by car.” Expanding into the international market also offers opportunities. How does Arnold see this? “We already have a website with a punt eu extension, and punt be is also in the pocket. Moreover, we are communicating more and more in English,” he says. Laughs: “The next time we speak, it might be at a location in Los Angeles. No, I guess not. But that the international market requires a different approach is in any case clear.”