Interview with an expert: Our consumables expert Tjakke talks about optimising the range

Tjakke Stevens is the product specialist for the consumables range. He started working in our warehouse where he got to know TVH and all of the products. This detailed product knowledge allows him to excel at his current job: product specialist and buyer.

Tjakke, you are specialised in everything related to the quality of consumables and how to use them in a workshop. What makes you an expert in this field?

I started working at TVH at a young age and have always been surrounded by experienced colleagues. They passed on their knowledge and inspired me with their passion for our products. I learned the tricks of the trade through my own experience, interest - also during my own free time - and especially through the close contact with our internal workshop. I really want to keep expanding my knowledge and use it to further optimise our product offer. The challenge is to find those products that offer the best value for money for our customers.

"We want to offer all the tools a mechanic needs to get the job done."

You recently expanded TVH’s range of consumables, more specifically, you added products to our tape and drill assortment. May I ask you why you chose to do this?

We want to offer all the tools a mechanic needs to get the job done and this at attractive prices. In order to do so, we are continuously looking to expand and complete our MRO range (Maintenance, Repair and Operations).

With that in mind, I looked at our product range and noticed some opportunities. For our drill assortment for example, we already had an extensive offer, but not all items were available from stock. I find it very important that our customers receive the best possible service so I made sure that the frequently used products and sizes are available immediately from stock. We have added the most commonly used sizes of the twist drills, step drills, countersinking bits, plate drills, machine taps, hand taps and cutting pads, core drills, burrs and bore bits to our stock. We now have an extensive range in stock which means the time between the order being placed and the order being delivered is reduced. This way, the customer receives his deliveries faster.

The tape assortment already had quite a few products available from stock, but we still had some room for expansion. We want to have a complete range, so we expanded our selection of tapes with Velcro tape, Duo grip, self-vulcanising tape, carpet tape, PTFE Teflon gas, double-sided PE foam tape, adhesive strips and aluminium tape.

You chose to expand the offer with specific brands. Why Ruko® (drills) and HPX® (tapes)?

Ruko is a German specialist in precision tools. Our mechanics tested the drills and they unanimously agreed that these drills are of a very good quality. In addition to the good quality, prices are great too. As a result, Ruko allows us to offer our customers a good price/quality ratio.

HPX was selected after we compared a lot of different brands. It is a Belgian brand with more than 25 years of experience. We even use this brand in-house.The brand is well-known in several European countries. It offers almost everything you need for the automotive, industrial and construction sector.

What are the most innovative products you have purchased?

This must be the Duo grip tape. A resealable click connection, that achieves optimal adhesion thanks to its special hook structure (see image). Contrary to the standard Velcro tape, the Duo grip consists of a single layer that adheres to itself (2 pieces of the same tape) and can handle loads that are up to 5 times heavier. This makes it a handy tool in and around your workshop. The tape is also temperature-resistant up to 100 °C.

As far as the drills are concerned, I really like the step drills from Ruko. They are shaped in a way that they can be used in a smooth motion.

"The challenge is to find those products that offer the best value for money for our customers."

Are there any plans for future expansions regarding the MRO range?

Every day, we work to develop a complete and high-quality product range to offer to our customers. We are planning to improve the quality of our paint and technical sprays, for example. My colleagues and I already scheduled a number of other expansions. These expansions and other similar projects are in the pipeline. I look forward to telling you more soon.

What do you hope to achieve in 5 years?

In 5 years, I hope that TVH is not only known for its spare parts for machines, but also for its large and high-quality selection of MRO products. We offer many well-known and trusted brands within the MRO field, that will allow us to provide an excellent service as a one-stop shop for all our customers.

So we will hear from you again soon?

Definitely! And I hope to hear from our customers too. Customer feedback is very important to TVH. They can always contact our sales department when they have questions or remarks. Our technically trained staff can also help them find what they are looking for or they can look for the items they need via our online search tool MyProductSearch in our webshop MyTotalSource.