The 119-year-old family business has been associated with inland shipping for over a century. The company has always existed as an independent entity and has remained in the same family, now in the hands of the fourth and fifth generations of Vink.

Smederij

Over a century ago, on January 17, 1905, the company began as a blacksmith shop, repairing steam installations of ships, dredgers, and polder pumping stations.

The second generation focused on diesel engines. Since there were no marine diesel engines at the time, Ford engines were converted into marine engines. One such converted Ford engine was used in the very first motorized "parlevinkervlet" (a type of Dutch barge). During the last years of the war, river shipping noticeably declined due to fuel shortages and financial difficulties among customers. Teun Vink II, with his experience as a blacksmith, managed to create usable products from scrap. He built gasification boilers, allowing gasoline engines of cars to run on wood blocks and charcoal. In this way, he managed to sustain his business through the war period.

Due to health reasons, his son Teun Vink III unexpectedly took over the management of the company at the age of 23 in 1947. Under the strict leadership of his father, he had already gained significant technical knowledge in the workshop and learned to calculate cost prices and sell them to customers. In the early fifties, Vink converted many Rhine barges from towboats to motor vessels. Initially, Caterpillar engines were often installed, and the ships would often wait five abreast in front of the shore for their engine installation. In the second half of the fifties, various Scania marine engines were also installed in smaller cargo ships and tugboats for some time.


In 1958, DAF Eindhoven established its own engine factory for the production of diesel engines. Teunis Vink III sold the first two ship engines produced by DAF to the ferry between Brakel and Herwijnen and later acquired the dealership of DAF. The DAF engine proved to have an excellent quality-to-price ratio and quickly developed a very good reputation. Because DAF was a Dutch product, engines and parts could be delivered very quickly.

In 1991, leadership was handed over to the fourth generation, son Teun Vink IV, daughter Petra Vink, and son-in-law John Ronckers. After working for Vink diesel for several years, Teun Vink IV shifted his focus to catalytic converters and left the family business to establish his own BV. On January 1, 1998, Vink diesel BV acquired the official dealership for MAN high-speed marine and industrial engines. The MAN engine range proved to be a good alternative to the no longer available DAF marine engines. Due to the much larger engine program compared to the previous DAF program, the market and customer base expanded significantly. In addition to the sale of MAN engines, the DAF engines continued to generate significant revenue from repairs and overhauls. Furthermore, on January 21, 2005, Vink diesel BV also acquired the official dealership for Doosan engines as a supplement to the existing range of MAN engines.

Under the leadership of John Ronckers, the company has established a strong position in the market. John played a central role and was deeply involved in the company. After his sudden death on February 1, 2008, Petra Vink continued the company together with Sander Langenberg as co-director.

Anticipating upcoming and stricter emission regulations, Vink, in collaboration with NPS, developed a sustainable marine diesel engine based on the DAF Euro VI truck engine. In 2017, the first marinized DAF engines were installed on board the vessel "ms. Noord." This was followed by a process of approval and certification. When the new NRMM Stage V Legislation came into force in 2019, Vink became the first manufacturer in Europe to supply Stage V engines. Because the engines comply with the Euro VI standard, they have up to 10 times lower soot emissions and up to 5 times lower NOx emissions than required by the law. Once again, the family business Vink demonstrated craftsmanship and established itself with this sustainable product.

Our customers are received in a personal atmosphere and receive individual attention. Over the years, the family business has been guided by two important principles: delivering quality and providing service, day and night. All of this has resulted in customers having trust in Vink diesel, which has earned us a large and loyal customer base.

      

Teunis Vink I Teunis Vink II Teunis Vink III John Ronckers

Teunis Vink I

Teunis Vink II

Teunis Vink III

John Ronckers

(*1861 – †1932)

(*1893 – †1959)

(*1923 – †1991)

(*1958 – †2008)

Director from 17-01-1905 to 06-07-1928

Director from 06-07-1928 to 05-07-1948

Director from 05-07-1948 to 01-01-1991

Director from 01-01-1991 to 01-02-2008