Frisian Motors: continue to innovate, change of direction imminent
Theo de Jong (50) is founder and director of Frisian Motors in Bakkeveen, Friesland. He is originally an entrepreneur in the telecom and low-voltage sector, so a real electro man! As an entrepreneur, he made the switch to the new EV market with distinctive products. It was precisely on this that he based the successful business model of his company Frisian Motors. 'We are growing nicely,' he says when asked. 'We are now focusing on off-road transportation equipment in many shapes and sizes.
De Jong: "Initially we built these offroads piece by piece, but nowadays we do this serially and with a scalable production line based on the lean idea. We have the undercarriages delivered custom-made. In the first assembly line, we use a repetitive process to build these into a moving vehicle. This is followed by disassembly. This is done specifically based on customer demand. In terms of undercarriages, there are four different types: two- and four-seaters, as well as two- and four-wheel drive with many variations. We also have a diversity of cargo boxes, cabs, batteries, etc.'
Q: Is there a stagnation in the transition to these types of EVs?
A: 'Somewhat, yes. With anything new, first the early adopters cause sales to rise. Then the market embraces the developments. In addition, this introductory phase causes a boost in sales. At some point, sales stabilize, even though the teething problems have just been dealt with. We are now in that phase. Customers also expect new breakthroughs that should give impetus to this market, before the final choice falls on electrically driven equipment.'
Q: Yet the number of suppliers is growing. How do you deal with this?
A: 'With the lead as a forerunner in this sector, we can keep our customers satisfied and win new ones. We continue to innovate. We do see competition appearing in the lower and upper segments. Our current range is the golden middle class, and unlike our competitors we do not focus on volume production of a few types. Special construction remains very important to us as a differentiator.'
Q: You talk about breakthroughs. What are you thinking of?
A: 'You have to think of the emergence of new battery technologies. Now the market focuses mainly on lithium polymer batteries. The development of sodium and solid state batteries (both with an even higher energy density, ed.) in my view offers opportunities for breakthroughs in electrifying heavier equipment and when it comes to longer working and driving times. This is going to rapidly change the EV landscape. Innovation in this area is something I am focusing on with Frisian Motors. In terms of sustainability, I see more in battery technologies than in hydrogen applications, unless they are natural sources. This is what they call white hydrogen gas, because there is that too!
Q: How important is continued innovation for Frisian Motors?
A: "It is very important! We have appointed a business manager for the operational part. That gives me more leeway to focus more on strategic matters. My main focus now is on growth and innovation. Regarding the latter, we have been working for two years on the development of a heavy-duty transporter for use on untraveled trails. We're going to announce more about that in the media at the end of this year. And we are not ruling out the possibility that in the medium term we will also be looking at more logistics vehicles that are not off-road."
Q: What opportunities for growth are on the horizon for you?
A: "Ambitious as we are, we would like to double the numbers and sales in the coming years, especially by focusing more on exports. We are already doing good business in Belgium, Germany, Denmark and the Czech Republic. Ultimately we want to enter all of Europe, but this is still a tall order. And finding good, reliable partners is a quest that also takes time."
Q: Do trade restrictions pose threats to this market?
A: "For us that is not an issue at the moment. It is difficult to make predictions about that in the longer term. Many components come from China, where the raw materials are available, such as lithium. That could be a risk in the long run and that requires strategic choices for us as a company. Because of this dependency, we are already going to look for production of components less far from home. For undercarriages, for example, we already have excellent contacts in Eastern Europe. In terms of price, it is almost not feasible to build our undercarriages from scratch in the Netherlands; we have investigated this before. The finishing and customization are now done in Bakkeveen and will remain so; we cannot easily outsource that.'
Q: Are more and more customers consulting a configurator?
A: 'Absolutely! We have been leading the way with this for eight years! The manufacturing industry already works with configuration software, called ERP. There are still very few technical companies that do not have this online or have limited availability for their customers. We have just started at the front end of the sales process with an online configurator. Interested customers put together their own vehicle with accessories. Then they immediately receive an e-mail from us with the price and delivery time. We will soon link this information to our production process. We recently switched to new ERP software. As soon as that is in place, this commercial link will be one of our first next steps.'
Q: Suppose: in the new cabinet you become State Secretary with the portfolio of Electric Vehicles. What then?"
A: "I would aim for stability in policy: provide clarity on subsidy options in the field of long-term sustainability. Then everyone can confidently invest in new alternatives until the market itself picks it up further. Unrest, unstable policy and lack of clarity are bad for economic growth!'
Source : www.stad-en-groen.nl