Engineering your career

I’m Lisa Grijpink, and I’ve been working at VIRO since 2023. After obtaining my Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering from Fontys University of Applied Sciences in Venlo, I started working as an R&D engineer six years ago. After moving to the west of the Netherlands, I worked for four years as an engineer, specialising in climate cells and horticultural installations. Then I decided I wanted to return to the challenge of a job in Mechanical Engineering, which is how I ended up at VIRO. I currently work in the Mechanical Engineering department of VIRO's Schiedam branch.

I’m Menno Pernot, and I’ve been working at VIRO's Echt branch since December 2022. I was born and raised in Grevenbicht, a village next to the River Meuse in Limburg. When looking at my options for higher education while still at secondary school, I quickly came to the conclusion that I wanted to do a bachelor's in mechanical engineering at Eindhoven University of Technology. After completing this degree, I followed the master's degree that goes by the same name. During my graduation internship at a company, I met someone from VIRO who was doing some work for them. I thought his work sounded incredibly interesting.

I’m Peter Brauckmann, and I started working at VIRO’s Hengelo branch in 2010. At the time, I hadn’t been very happy with my previous employer. I came across the VIRO website online, a company unknown to me at the time. However, it looked like they were involved in some interesting projects, so I sent an application. It led to me joining VIRO, where I’ve now been working for 14 years.

Other girls get given dolls. You get given LEGO. As a child, you enjoyed taking things apart, only to wonder afterwards: ‘How do I put this back together again?’ You’re an engineer, in other words. Hilde has always had a knack for it, so it won’t come as a surprise that she’s now working at VIRO. ‘I studied Maritime Engineering in Delft. Or shipbuilding, as everyone calls it in the real world. That was followed by a master’s degree in the same field: Marine Technology.’

I’m Laurens Spier, and I’ve been working in the Mechanical Engineering department at VIRO’s Zwolle branch since mid-2021. Before joining VIRO, I studied mechanical engineering at Saxion University of Applied Sciences in Enschede. I’ve just finished a project here for Spark Holland, a developer and manufacturer of analysis systems for laboratories. The project involved a trade fair presentation for Spark. I worked with a design agency on creating new designs for a number of machines, then I personally assembled them at the end of the project.

Hi, I'm Niek, 30 years old, and I’m from Zaandam. In terms of career, I followed a VWO pre-university course while I was already working part-time at a DIY store with a carpentry workshop. We turned out products such as cupboards, doors, kitchens, furniture, walls – basically anything related to wood. After I completed my VWO course, I started working there full-time.