This year, from October 13 to 20, no less than four teams of Dutch TU/HBO students are competing in the biennial World Solar Challenge Event. The goal is to cover a distance of 3,021 km on solar energy as quickly as possible. The race goes straight through Australia, from Darwin to Adelaide. TU Delft has been the winner several times before; since 2005 TU Twente has been a formidable competitor. As of 2013 TU Eindhoven also competes - successfully - in the Cruiser class and this year a team of MBO, HBO and WO students from Groningen will take on the challenge!

'Just as a mother cherishes and protects her child with a blanket, we protect our customers' products during transport and handling,' explain Peter Geerts of IPS Technology and Dennis Groesbeek of Meilink. 'Packaging is never just packaging. It's about much more than some planks and nails. If a difficult solution then looks simple, we have done our job well.'

One of our customers supplies production lines for the production of micro-optics and sensors. High-quality and very fragile hi-tech innovations that are delivered to customers worldwide. Meilink packages these capital-intensive production lines. In this way, they travel completely secure and arrive anywhere in the world. Without a single scratch. It's not for nothing that packaging is our profession. Packaging unusual products is everyday business for Meilink.

Meilink is once again supporting the Nuon Solar Team of Delft University of Technology! In the run-up to the Sasol Solar Challenge that will be held next September, the Nuon Solar Team recently presented its brand new, super smart solar car: the Nuna9S. Place of action? The Beekse Bergen!

Meilink has been certified for another five years for the Programme for Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC). The international PEFC hallmark guarantees that virtually all solid wood and paper products that Meilink processes into packaging originate from sustainably managed forests. These include forests in Scandinavia, the Baltic States, Russia and Germany.

All branches of export packaging company Meilink have switched to 100% green electricity and gas from Pure Energie. Meilink is the market leader in the Benelux in the field of industrial packaging and has been working for years to make its organization more sustainable. By switching to green energy supplier Pure Energie, Meilink is saving more than 1.2 million kilos of CO2 per year. That is comparable to planting 60,000 trees!

For industrial machine manufacturers who want to ship their products to customers, Meilink applies a method proven in practice. Dennis Groesbeek, Director Meilink Schijndel: "These large machines are usually packed and shipped in parts. The core of our method is that the customer manages a small, compact packing department for outgoing logistics. At the moment that one or more parts of such a machine arrive internally, we ensure that the appropriate packaging is available correctly and completely, so exactly on time. The packer immediately does his job and applies the pre-processed packaging to suit."

Varekamp Project Services (VPS) and Meilink have worked together solidly to move a 1,200 m3 tank for Cargill crude oil as a result of the dismantling of the Mainz Crush Plant. Wouter van Munster, commercial director of VPS: "Once again it turns out that together you are strong."

FEFPEB stands for Fédération Européenne des Fabricants de Palettes et Emballages en Bois. This is the European federation for producers of wooden pallets and packaging. Every two years they hold a large congress, with a smaller version in the following year. From 11 to 13 October 2017, the Dutch industry association EPV organized the large-scale 8th FEFPEB congress in Maastricht. EPV stands for Dutch Packaging and Pallet Industry Association and FEFPEB is the international umbrella trade association with EPV as the Dutch partner. Meilink Schijndel was happy to open its doors for an enlightening company visit for a total of approximately 120 visitors.