PP4CE (Professional Partners for Control Environment) has been in existence for six years and is a collaboration between professional partners who are active in the controlled environment market, with one organisation in the Netherlands and one organisation operating internationally. The initiator of these strategic alliances is Geerd Jansen, board member within the Brecon Group, together with Paul Joosten, PP4CE partner from the very beginning and board member at Kuijpers. Global Health & Pharma magazine has recognised the collaboration for its Best Cleanroom Design and Engineering Specialists 2021 – Europe award, so we speak to the duo to learn more.
A strategic alliance of specialised companies in cleanroom market segments such as semiconductor, pharmacy, medical services and/or the food sector, PP4CE has the extensive experience in the field of control environment solutions.
Geerd Hansen said, “After having been internationally active in construction chemicals for 35 years on an executive level, I came into contact with cleanroom technology in 2014 as a consultant for the Brecon Group. A very interesting market in which Brecon had already been active for 25 years, primarily in the semi-conductor sector. When I was asked to write a strategic plan for this great company, I noticed that there were hardly any parties active that offered actual turn-key projects. Moreover, many small providers were (and still are) active with relatively little knowledge and experience in the various market segments. I believe that such an important facility as a cleanroom should be built with the best parties and that is why I started looking for truly professional partners within this industry; one of them was Kuijpers.”
As director within the Kuijpers organisation, Paul Joosten is responsible for controlled environments in the life sciences and high-tech industry. Kuijpers is a 100-year-old family business specialising in all disciplines related to technical installations in buildings and industry with over 1,300 employees and 14 branches in the Netherlands.
“At the time, Paul also recognised the importance of pooling expertise by serious partners, and that’s how the PP4CE concept was born,” said Geerd.
Many parties are now active as partners within the PP4CE alliance. Some examples from the first hour include Bolidt (floors), Assa Abloy Entrance Technology, WERO, Cleanroom Cleaning, Denios (safety), Mennens Cleanroom Cranes, but also the architectural office of AKEN and CMI (monitoring) in Eindhoven. Due to the division into three specialised segments, food, pharma and high-tech, specialised companies have now been added such as ELIS (cleanroom clothing), D&M (vacuum oven systems), TRIMO Group Sandwich panels and UNICORN Industrial Cleaning Solutions. With the division into three market segments, they were able to integrate more specialised disciplines as a partner and they are even better able to respond to all questions within these specific sub-markets.
Geerd said, “More and more people can talk to us about really all disciplines in cleanroom technology. As part of the Brecon Group, Brecon Clean Interiors is the contact partner for LAF cabinets, collision protection, safety workbenches and all other lab and cleanroom equipment.”
Paul Joosten said, “At the time of acquaintance with the PP4CE concept, Kuijpers had already realised some nice “controlled environment” projects. At the time, I also saw a development in the Dutch market in which clients increasingly wanted to enter into a “design, build and maintain” process based on turn-key construction concepts. This trend has developed strongly and for us as an organisation this was and is an excellent development because it allows us to optimally demonstrate our expertise and experience.
“Having worked on the ASML campus for decades, the Brecon Group was primarily a well-known partner for us at the time, which people thought of in high-tech assignments. Much has changed in recent years. We have now jointly built a series of complex GMP projects and the Brecon Group has developed strongly in the field of GMP regulations.”
Geerd added, “That is indeed a fact. Having been focused on the semi-conductor sector for decades, Brecon became more known as a specialist for the high-tech market. In the meantime, we have become a completely different company in our product portfolio, service and the existing GMP knowledge and experience.
“More and more quote requests are coming in across the entire width of the controlled environment spectrum and more and more are “design and build” projects. We handle the request together with Kuijpers and we often jointly introduce the PP4CE concept to the prospective client. We start the often-complex assignment together with the client in the stage of defining the URS and with all other PP4CE partners, we then work on the entire process from the initial phase up to the planning and realisation phase, including commissioning and qualification. Thanks to the integrated approach of the entire PP4CE team, we can work faster and at a high-quality level.”
The collaboration is now known (inter)nationally as a reliable partner for in time realisation of cleanrooms, containments and laboratories in the various market segments. Food, high-tech or life science projects, large or small, simple or very complex…. the partners within PP4CE are not afraid of a challenge and realise each project within the set time schedule, as they have repeatedly demonstrated in recent years. The list of GMP related “design and build” references is now long and impressive.
Paul said, “We started together in 2016 with the realisation of a big hospital-pharmacy for a group of hospitals in the Hague (AHZ). Immediately afterwards, the realisation of the hospital-pharmacy in the Princess Maxima hospital in Utrecht followed, followed by the construction of the APPO pharmacy in Roosendaal. We recently completed the construction project of the hospital-pharmacy for the Catherina Hospital in Eindhoven. We are proud to look at our reference list in which beautiful GMP projects, among other projects at MSD (Organon), ASPEN, FUJI and REPLIGEN are realised. To get a good impression of the quality we deliver, I would advise viewing the short impression film on our site in which we show the result of building a cleanroom for a worldwide leading pharmaceutical company at one of their locations in Amsterdam.”
Both entrepreneurs leave no doubt about it: the PP4CE group will strive for further (international) growth and will not shy away from a challenge to realise their objective together with their PP4CE partners!
For more information on the PP4CE alliance, please contact initiator Geerd Jansen by emailing [email protected] or calling +31 (0) 6 46 3573 46.
