Luyten Interiolizers has a new home – and it’s creating a cascade of positive vibes. As he walks through the brand-new buildings, CEO Bert Luyten sheds light on the project that secures the company’s future: “There’s a fresh, positive breeze blowing through this place”, he says. “And it’s not only lifting the spirits of our team, but of our customers as well”, he says. “We can feel their confidence in us growing.”
“I’m incredibly proud that we can finally showcase our new facilities”, Bert begins. “In our old setup, we had simply reached the limits of what was possible. So we needed to invest. That means spending both money and time – in this case, a lot more time than we had expected.”
Delays
Bert explains that when the ‘klaverblad’ (Dutch for ‘cloverleaf’, i.e. the local motorway interchange in Lummen) was being redeveloped, several scenarios suggested that the Luyten site would disappear altogether. Relocation looked almost certain. “When we finally learned that we could stay – albeit under strict conditions – a lot of time had already passed. At that time, we were also working out how to properly manage the succession: in 2006, my father and his two brothers handed the family business over to the next generation of Luytens. That’s a process you don’t want to upset by taking major risks. So that also slowed things down. And then, to top it all off: the very day we got permission to expand on our original site… also was the start of the first Covid lockdown. Talk about great timing…”
Flooded with light
“But there was good news too. We received support for our strategic transformation from VLAIO, the Flemish Agency for Innovation and Entrepreneurship. This allowed us to innovate even more, because the subsidy covered not only investments per se, but also staff training. VLAIO’s criteria are innovation, strengthening the company, internationalisation, sustainability, and contributing to the economy of Flanders. And we more than meet each of those criteria. This support was crucial for us.”
Staying exactly where the Luyten story began back in 1973 was another big win. Even if it came with conditions. “One such condition was that the new building shouldn’t be longer or wider than the original one”, Bert explains. “We were, however, allowed to expand upwards. In so doing, we doubled our usable space. Two years after the first lockdown, construction finally started.”
It was a tough time for the company. For months, staff had to work from containers. “Not exactly inspiring, especially if you’re an interior design company,” Bert laughs. “But now that we’re in our new home, we have room to grow – and we are growing: revenue is rising. That rise already started during the renovation. There’s a fresh, positive breeze blowing through this place. And it’s not only lifting the spirits of our team, but of our customers as well. We can feel their confidence in us growing. Our headcount is growing too: we work with a large pool of freelancers and now have 42 permanent employees. They all have far more room to move here – and it makes me really happy that our people had real input during the redesign. Thanks to their feedback, our offices and workshops are flooded with natural light. It’s a massive step forward.”
Sustainability
Luyten isn’t just investing in new buildings, the company is also focusing time, money and effort on automation, software, staff training. “And of course sustainability”, Bert continues. “With this building and its energy systems, we are incredibly future-proof. For example, our production halls have underfloor heating. This is not yet powered by heat pumps, because there are no affordable solutions at this scale – at least not yet. As soon as they do become viable, however, we can switch immediately. All our lighting is LED. Residual heat from the compressed-air lines feeds straight into the underfloor system. Once we replace the remaining section of the roof, we’ll put up solar panels. Our extraction system now works in stages, saving huge amounts of energy. And when we consider buying new machines, energy efficiency is a key part of the decision. We have a computer-controlled, automated warehouse that tracks and managest offcuts – meaning nothing is thrown away anymore. That’s pretty much the textbook definition of sustainability.”
Looking ahead
“In terms of fire safety, almost the entire building is compartmentalised. We decided against sprinklers – far from ideal when you’re surrounded by wood. An accidental activation would ruin our entire stock in minutes. That would be catastrophic. So instead we use an RWA smoke and heat exhaust system, with smoke tunnels that ensure fire doesn’t spread.”
“Technologically, we’ve also taken big steps. Our machinery is absolutely top of the range, allowing us to deliver work of the highest quality”, Bert says, running his hand across an exclusive console worth as much as a house. This is the Yoma: designed by Alex Kerstens, crafted by Luyten Interiolizers, and sold to a Qatari dignitary. “I know”, Bert smiles, “I could go on listing all the efforts we’ve made, all the things we’ve achieved. Fortunately, there’s also a much shorter version: We’re ready for the future. I’m 55 years old. So we’re easily good for another 50 years!”
Design – Urban Dots Studio
Foto’s – ©mathieu_gijbels