Maikel van de Bovenkamp

“I really appreciate the variety in my work”

My Unisign story: Maikel van de Bovenkamp has been a General Final Assembly Employee since 2018. At least, that is his official role. In practice, Maikel also takes on several ‘side activities’ at Unisign.

Maikel is a true ‘Kepèlse’ boy. For those who don’t know: Kepèl is the Limburg dialect for Panningen, the village where our company is located. After the LTS school (technical secondary), Maikel worked for a few years in metalworking, “but that wasn’t for me.” So he went back to school for a training program as an installation technician. He worked in that field for 22 years at an installation company in Panningen. “Until they went bankrupt and I had to find a new job,” Maikel recalls. “That’s when I applied for this position at Unisign.”

Disassembly, packaging, and loading

He was able to start shortly after his application. But what does a General Final Assembly Employee actually do? Maikel: “In short: dismantling CNC machines and preparing them for transport to our customers. Sometimes I even go on-site to dismantle a machine and reassemble it at another location. I also help out when the Assembly department needs extra hands. And currently, I’m temporarily replacing a colleague in the Logistics department.”

Truck or container ship

Many of our machines are sold within Europe, so road transport is the preferred method of transport. Maikel: “For larger, complex CNC machines, you need four trucks. Loading two trucks takes a whole day. It involves a lot of lifting work in our hall. You need to distribute the weight properly, place beams, rubber pads, and tarpaulins, and secure everything tightly. We assist the driver with this.”
If a machine is going to an overseas destination, containers have to be loaded. Maikel: ‘Crating and placing our machines in a container is a very precise job. We do this together with a specialised party. Everything has to fit exactly and be rock-solid, so that the cargo does not shift or tip over.’

Inspector and more

The more experience you have, the more scope you get within our company to take on additional tasks. Maikel is a good example of this. Together with a colleague, he is an inspector and inspects the materials and tools we use. Maikel: ‘That amounts to around 4,000 items per year.’ Maikel is also certified to give a number of internal courses to colleagues. ‘For example, for the hoisting certificate, forklift certificate and working at height.’
For the past three years, Maikel has been chairman of our Works Council. “I visit many departments and know a lot of people, which I enjoy. That contact is very useful as Works Council chairman. I see and hear what’s happening on the shop floor and can bring it up with our management.”

Airfryer

There are 15 colleagues working in the Final Assembly department. “We have a lot of fun together,” Maikel laughs. “Every Friday, we turn on the air fryer so we can enjoy some tasty treats together. The department outings with our team are always a lot of fun too.’
Maikel sees the variety in his work as a major plus. “No day is the same. Of course, dismantling and preparing machines for transport are common tasks, but even there, there’s enough variation because we make different types of CNC machines at Unisign.”

Obenkampf Brewery

A few times a year, Maikel brews special beers in his own microbrewery. He laughs: “It’s just in our kitchen, purely for personal use. And for family, friends, or colleagues who want to try it. The first beer I ever made was a disaster, but you learn by doing. I’ve been doing it for about eight years now. You can also find me under the name Obenkampf on the well-known beer lovers’ platform Untappd.”

Heavy metal

Since his teenage years, Maikel has been a big fan of hard rock and heavy metal music. Festivals such as Graspop and Jera on Air have been on his festival agenda for years. Maikel: “The atmosphere at his festival is always great. You’re surrounded by like-minded people. I used to enjoy going to the big, multi-day festivals. But that doesn’t appeal to me anymore. I suppose it has something to do with age. I’d rather skip the camping with an air mattress, little sleep, and barely any showers. Now I prefer smaller festivals and a good night’s rest at home or in a B&B.”

Maikel shares his love of heavy music with his two sons. “Going to a Rammstein concert together is really enjoyable – even when the weather isn’t great.”

October 14, 2025