‘Ingenuity is a mentality, something that’s inherent in Van Oord’s employees. Thanks to PortXL, we were in touch with over 700 scouted start-ups. It’s very valuable for us to work with them on innovative ideas and develop ingenious products. They force us to look at our own products and services from their point of view. The start-ups specialise in different market segments where they offer innovations and improvements that help optimise our services.’

Van Oord’s daily business, and more specific: the challenges that are faced, are interesting topics for start-ups. In addition to Parable, four other start-ups are being immersed into the world of Van Oord.

Anneke Hibma
Engineering Manager at Van Oord 

‘Start-ups form a source of creativity and entrepreneurship and inspire existing companies that are aiming for innovation. At the same time, companies can give start-ups a substantial boost when it comes to marketing their products. Bringing the two sides together creates a cluster that drives smart breakthroughs for the port of Rotterdam and beyond. The Port of Rotterdam Authority stimulates this by scouting for promising ideas, investing in incubator and accelerator programmes like PortXL, making funds available, and offering locations with prototype and testing facilities.’

The Port of Rotterdam Authority aims to enhance the port’s competitive position as a logistics hub and world-class industrial complex. Not only in terms of size, but also with regard to quality, making them an ambitious partner within the PortXL initiative.

Paul Smits
CFO at Port of Rotterdam Authority

‘Cooperating with start-ups helps us to accelerate our innovations. They come with refreshing solutions for existing problems and new ambitions. For example, we have created an agile global innovation team that set up Proof of Concepts (PoCs). A PoC means that we are experimenting with technology on a small scale within the terminals to validate it and its potential business value. This results in very short lead times and, if successful, eases the transition into a pilot. This is all part of Vopak’s digital transformation journey, and the PortXL initiative is therefore of immense value to us.’

Vopak is a leading tank storage provider for the oil and chemical industry. With their 400 years of experience in storage and transhipment, they are a valuable partner for this start-up programme.

Leo Brand
CIO at Vopak

‘The net effect is that start-ups and large international companies can achieve more and get there faster by combining the best of both worlds. Parable is a start-up that creates immersive safety training solutions using virtual reality. We believe that we have a lot to offer to companies, because we bring domain-specific expertise and a technology focus that can complement a company’s core activities. Innovation is often challenging for large companies because it requires balancing high-risk ventures with ongoing operational activities. Collaborating with start-ups, even in pilot projects, can help companies stay abreast of recent technologies and create a low-risk space for innovative ideas to grow and thrive.’

The young entrepreneurs of Parable have been assigned by Van Oord to work on a simulation environment for offshore wind lifting operations. 

Sam Ryan
Owner of start-up Parable

Every year, the start-up accelerator programme PortXL and its partners, including Van Oord, select a dozen port-related start-ups. In hundred days they are mentored to become market winners. The parties involved, including the experts featured in this magazine, believe in the added value of start-up initiatives.