Van Beest

ROYAL VAN BEEST.

A CENTURY OF HEAVY LIFTING

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ROYAL VAN BEEST

I PROFILE

When things need to be lifted, customers all over the world call Royal Van Beest. Known for its premium quality lifting equipment, Royal Van Beest’s impressive portfolio of lifting, lashing and mooring fittings is trusted on the world’s most demanding work sites. Having just celebrated its centenary, this Dutch family-owned company is more optimistic about the future than ever before. Heavy Lifting Sales & Export Manager Rifat Cevahir got Richard Hagan hooked on the lifting industry.

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ince 1922, Royal Van Beest has

Celebrating the centenary

been manufacturing premium

Van Beest was established in Sliedrecht

quality lifting equipment; and

(near Rotterdam), in 1922, by Dirk Van Beest,

today, thanks to its commitment

after whom the company is named. Initially,

to excellence, quality and

all of the company’s forged products were

S

customer service, it has climbed to the top of the demanding,

sold mainly to Dutch dredging companies, such as Boskalis and Van Oord, who are nowadays still major clients.

high stakes

The family ownership and the com-

lifting game. It is

pany’s living connection to the original

deservedly now the

Van Beest family remain a key part of the

world’s leading manu-

company’s modern identity and a proud

facturer of lifting, lashing

aspect of its heritage.

and mooring fittings – such

In 2022, Van Beest celebrated its cente-

as shackles, hooks and remotely

nary with the simultaneous announcement

operated vehicle (ROV) accessories.

that it had successfully applied for the title

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ROYAL VAN BEEST

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I PROFILE

of Royal. The application process with The

stockholding. “We carry the largest stock-

Netherlands’ Royal House began in 2021

holding in the world,” Heavy Lifting Sales &

and took over a year, involved detailed

Export Manager Rifat Cevahir revealed. “Our

audits of the company’s current and

mindset has always been to put money into

historical business practices, ownership

material rather than in the bank, because

and management. All of its past directors

when times are tough, (such as during the

were also investigated. Meanwhile, the

high demand for energy and gas due to the

Royal House even sought the Mayor of

war between Ukraine and Russia), then our

Sliedrecht’s advice on the application.

distributors must be able to trust that they’ll

Having successfully completed the pro-

be able to source their product from us no

cess, Van Beest changed its name to Royal

matter what.”

Van Beest. The Royal title reflects the com-

Royal Van Beest’s stock is securely held

pany’s reliability, integrity and ambition and

in its own warehouse, which features 13,000

further adds to the company’s credibility.

pallet places for a combined stock value of €50 million. This stockholding capacity

Doing the heavy lifting

ensures that Royal Van Beest has 97-98%

Royal Van Beest remains headquartered in

stock availability at all times.

Sliedrecht in the Netherlands, but today, its

The company is staffed by 250 employees

reach goes far beyond the town’s borders.

located worldwide, including workshop

The Green Pin® shackles are often used

teams, office and sales staff.

in major oil and gas projects and recently contributed to ADNOC’s Lightning project

Forging a new path

in the UAE, the Margin Oil Field Development

Over its 100 years in business, Royal Van

in Saudi Arabia and the Northfield East LNG

Beest has constantly evolved not only its

project in Qatar. Royal Van Beest has also

product range, but crucially, also the way

supplied projects in the Caspian Sea, Brazil

the shackle range is manufactured.

and the US. Shackles have been used for

One of the key changes it has made

topside installations, platforms or installa-

is in its switch from standard forging to

tion on the seabed.

a method known as upset forging. While

This is only possible thanks to its network

forging is traditionally a process that

of 900 distributors spanning 94 countries:

involves physically hammering or pressing

Royal Van Beest efficiently serves

a product into shape, upset forging (also

customers around the world, including

known as ‘free forming’) is an automated

ADNOC, ARAMCO, Shell, bp, ENI and Total.

process that involves locally heating

Royal Van Beest is able to fulfil demand

a metal bar and then applying pressure

uniquely efficiently thanks to its substantial

to the end of the bar in the direction of its

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ROYAL VAN BEEST

I PROFILE

axis, to bend it into its final shape – a shackle body.

Parts produced using upset forging exhibit better levels of strength and soundness, while resisting deformation and breakage during use. These characteristics make such shackles ideal for applications where high performance is critical – such as the heavy-lifting industry.

Shackles make up fully 80% of Royal Van Beest’s turnover, of which the standard range of shackles is manufactured in Holland in a specialised, highly automated production line.

“Our upset forging line is quite unique: we have three forges that bend a solid shackle into shape, and from there we only have to drill the eye,” said Mr Cevahir. “It’s fully automated and involves minimal material loss, leading to a very competitive price.”

The production lines include heat treatment and assembly, with automated inspections occurring throughout the process, ensuring that any flaws or imperfections are identified and resolved immediately. This process maintains Royal Van Beest’s extremely tight tolerance levels and it guarantees that sub-par products will never reach a customer’s warehouse.

Going green While one of Royal Van Beest’s most active markets is the oil and gas industry, it is deliberately developing new business in the wind energy market, and it’s doing that through

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smart investments in product development and in an exciting acquisition.

One of Royal Van Beest’s best-selling

Thanks to these acquisitions, Royal Van Beest is now able to counter every market’s demand, including wind farm

products is its Green Pin ® shackles.

contractors: a holistic lifting solution that

Regarded as the world’s leading brand

features the company’s entire portfolio of

for premium quality lifting and lashing

lifting products from crane block to seabed.

equipment, The Green Pin ® range includes

Additionally, thanks to ongoing invest-

shackles, turnbuckles, hooks and fibre

ments in its heavy lifting hooks as well

link chains. Easily identifiable thanks to

as mooring equipment, Royal Van Beest

their trademarked green colour pin, Green

is able to offer a range of seabed mooring

Pin ® shackles are built to international

products for floating wind farms.

standards, are battle-proven, and offer

“We expect that these products

unrivalled performance and reliability.

In 2017 and late 2022, Royal Van Beest

together could make us a one-stop shop for our customers,” Mr Cevahir concluded.

acquired Irizar Forge and Sling Supply

“Where contractors who need to lift

International SA (Slingsintt), both based in

a nacelle may previously have had to sep-

Spain. Irizar Forge is the expert in forging

arate the product suppliers, we are now

heavy lifting hooks and crane blocks,

able to supply everything in one project.”

while Sling Supply International is espe-

Royal Van Beest attends the ADIPEC

cially well-known for the lifting tools that

show in October every year and you

it has developed for the global wind

are cordially invited to meet the Royal

industry which are used in the lifting of

Van Beest team and discuss your

nacelles, hubs, towers and blades.

lifting requirements.

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