MKG celebrates 25 years innovation at Brainport Industries Campus

A quarter of a century of growth, innovation, and collaboration: that's what MKG Nederland celebrated last Friday at the Brainport Industries Campus (BIC) in Eindhoven. The anniversary event brought together partners, customers, and business relations around a theme that has characterized MKG for 25 years: the power of automated and controlled process handling, digitization, and collaboration in the manufacturing industry.

Smart Industry ambassador Eric Bakker opened the program with an afternoon full of innovations and immediately set the tone: “We have reached this milestone by working together with our customers and partners. Digitization is no longer a luxury; it has become a necessity to remain competitive.”

During the plenary session, founders Henk Abbring and Gérard Altena took the audience on a journey through MKG's history. From modest beginnings with basic functionalities, the company has evolved into a leading supplier of open and integrable cloud-based ERP solutions, serving over a thousand customers in the metal industry. “From the outset, we opted for standardization, flexibility, and openness,” said Altena. “That is precisely why we are so well-positioned today to respond to the latest developments.”

Keynote speaker Edward Voncken emphasized the strategic importance of digitization, especially at a time when issues such as CO2 reduction, the circular economy, and international legislation and regulations are dominating the agenda.

The fact that collaboration is in MKG's DNA was also evident during the pitches by the so-called add-on partners. Their demonstrations showed how easy it is for companies to link and optimize all their processes today. From AI applications to digital invoicing (which will be mandatory throughout Europe from 2030), from CO2 footprint calculations to remanufacturing within circular business models: the innovations are readily available and integrated into the MKG software.

BIC

The location of the event, the Brainport Industries Campus, also received explicit attention. Director Erik Veurink emphasized how BIC facilitates collaboration between education, research, and business. MKG contributes to this by participating in innovative programs such as NXTGEN Hightech, which ensures that the software is continuously developed based on the latest practical requirements.

An interactive tour of the various demo setups followed the plenary program. Visitors not only had the opportunity to see the latest applications with their own eyes, but could also talk to all MKG colleagues and add-on partners. The informal closing get-together then provided plenty of opportunity to look back and look ahead.

Last year, MKG was acquired by ProAlpha Group, which strengthens MKG's strategic position in Europe. “We do it together,” said director Henk Abbring, summarizing the day. “And that is exactly what has made us strong over the past 25 years. The challenges remain great, but with this collaboration and innovative strength, we will continue to build the future of the metal industry.”