Always innovate, improve, listen and look to the future. CTO Twan Mennink: ,,We can always do better.”

“I want to find solutions that no one has thought of yet. Solutions that can make an actual difference. That's why I feel at home at Oreon, because I can do that here.” Twan Mennink (40) is Chief Technical Officer (CTO) at the company and is involved in innovations. In always improving the water-cooled LED fixture.

 

In 2007, Twan and the team of the University of Twente participated in the World Solar Challenge in Australia, a race across the outback with solar-powered cars. During this project he developed an interest in sustainability. After his studies, Twan lived and worked in Switzerland for six years as a developer of precision drives for aerospace and medical technology.

When Twan started at Oreon, it was still a start-up. “There were four or five people working here. It was interesting to be able to make an actual contribution. Moreover, the horticultural world immediately appealed to me: in the Netherlands mainly concentrated in the Westland, with an ecosystem of greenhouse-related companies around it. They are constantly developing and innovating and on the look out for new affordable solutions for growers. It is a great challenge to take part in this”.

Innovations

It does not take much effort for Twan to master the matter; he already knows the basics of LED. He also immediately believed that LED could best be cooled with water. He is always busy keeping up to date and learn more. Twan has a physics background and is also starting to know more and more about the secrets of photosynthesis. “With the multi-layer LED fixture Embrace, we have once again created something new and interesting. The options for vertical and indoor farming really add something to the future of greenhouse horticulture.”

The Embrace is an example of a successful innovation. However, innovation never happens overnight. Innovation needs a constant eye on the future, a quest for further improvement. Not every idea leads to innovation, not every idea turns out to be good or fruitful. Some projects take up time and money, Oreon gives the innovation team that space.