Looking back: 50 years of Mifa & the future — interview with Rob van Oene
On a Saturday evening in 2018, Rob sketched a logistics plan on paper using his children’s coloured pencils. It was in that moment that the idea for the Mifa Campus was born – a vision that will become reality in the years ahead.
This is the story of the precision expert and Managing Director of Mifa: Rob van Oene.
From Internal Sales to Managing Director
Over the past 25 years, Rob has held a variety of roles at Mifa. After completing his Mechanical Engineering degree at Fontys in Eindhoven, he began a secondment project at Mifa Aluminium. “During my studies I learned a great deal about engineering, but I wanted more interaction in my work; asking questions and offering advice – just as I did in my part‑time job at the DIY store. I had never laid a brick in my life, but by listening to my colleagues, I was able to advise others.”
Rob was 22 when he joined Mifa. His first interview was with John Hermans, then Head of Internal Sales. During the second interview, Hans van Elven also joined, together with the Managing Director at the time, Hans Zitman. It soon became clear that Rob would start in the Internal Sales department, with Northern Germany as his designated region. “I worked closely with the account manager responsible for that area. My tasks included preparing quotations on the computer, which were then sent to customers by fax. Jan Hendrikx handled the calculations; in his desk drawer he kept a form with extrusion ratios, alloys and price‑per‑kilo information, which he used to determine the final price. If I needed the Quality department, I could simply knock on Jan Zegers’ door. Every colleague had their own way of working. No two colleagues worked alike, and that meant every customer enquiry required a different approach and coordination. Over time, I gained a clearer understanding of how to obtain the right answers.”
After his period in Internal Sales, Rob initially wanted to gain experience at other companies – until a unique opportunity arose. He was offered a position in the field as an account manager, with the United Kingdom as his territory. “After my studies I had wanted to travel, but it never happened. When I was given the chance to move to England for work, I seized it with both hands.”
After living in Central England for three years and developing the United Kingdom market for Mifa, he returned to the Netherlands. This time, he took on the role of Field Sales Representative for Northern Germany. The same product, the same approach – but a different culture and different customers. This position eventually evolved into key account management for Germany and the Benelux.
A leader in times of growth and uncertainty
When the previous Head of Sales stepped down, the Managing Director at the time, Hans Zitman, asked Rob to take on the position. “There were colleagues in the Sales department with far more experience than I had – but Hans believed in me as a leader, and I truly enjoyed working in this role.”
“I had the privilege of working under both Hans Zitman and Geert Smits as Managing Directors; each of them was a technically minded leader with a genuine passion for the profession, yet each in his own way. Hans focused entirely on technology and extrusion, while Geert – his successor – also recognised the importance of marketing and was highly customer‑oriented. During that period, a foundation was established that we still uphold today: extrusion forms the basis, and upon that foundation we build the techniques required to deliver the complete product.
We recognised opportunities in places where others did not. For example, we developed an Aerospace plan and obtained both the Airbus and AS9100 certifications. I recently looked back at that plan, and we have now achieved every objective. That is something to be genuinely proud of.”
After seven years as Head of Sales, Rob felt the need for something entirely different. Not sales, not extrusion – simply something new. When Geert Smits stepped down as Managing Director, Rob was offered the opportunity to take on the role. On 1 April 2017, Rob van Oene became Managing Director.
Rob’s journey in this position was not without challenges. In 2017, a chemical reaction occurred in the former AHC – now Surface Treatment – releasing toxic fumes. The following year, in 2018, Mifa was struck by a major fire. And in 2019, COVID emerged. “You are never prepared for that,” Rob says.
“There was a foundation established that we still uphold today: extrusion forms the basis, and upon that foundation we build the techniques required to deliver the complete product.”
Despite all the setbacks, Rob brought structure to the organisation. “It was time for a new way of working. I expected people to take ownership, and therefore placed more responsibility with the colleagues themselves. It was not practical for me to act as the central link between the operational departments; we needed someone dedicated to operations. Someone who could connect the departments. Today, our Management Team includes an Operations Manager and a Technology Manager, and together we have established customer value chains. There is now far greater collaboration between departments, and people take far more initiative. Our core values truly come to life in this way.”
Alongside the challenges, there have also been many highlights, with 2023 standing out as an exceptional year for Mifa.
Looking back at 50 years of Mifa
In 2025, Mifa Aluminium celebrated its 50th anniversary. We marked the occasion by organising special editions of the Venloop and the SV Venray Company Tournament, as well as a jubilee celebration, a business evening, a networking afternoon and an open day.
“For the networking afternoon, we invited the founder of Mifa – Mr Jan Aalberts. Fifty years ago, he laid the first building blocks for the company that today holds a prominent position in the field of precision extrusion. It was both unique and valuable to take a moment to reflect on that.”
Beyond the anniversary milestones, we at Mifa continued to focus on innovation. We received official approval from Aalberts for the construction of the new surface treatment line – a crucial and sustainable component of our large campus, ensuring that we can continue to guarantee the quality of our products for customers in the years ahead.
We can continue to safeguard the high quality of our products by continuously innovating our internal processes and staying ahead in technology. “Since this year, we have an operational excellence team that is continuously committed to process improvement and innovation at Mifa, and therefore also to our customers.”
Dreams of the coming years
“We continue to grow. And we can realise this growth through shared ambitions with Aalberts. We want to serve even more international customers and demonstrate our capabilities on the world stage. How remarkable would it be not only to be the market leader in precision extrusion in Europe, but also, for example, on the other side of the world – the very place where Jan Aalberts discovered precision extrusion 50 years ago.”
Mifa Campus
Growth and innovation in both technology and service also mean an expansion of physical space for Mifa Aluminium. In 2017, Building C was constructed – and its full capacity has already been utilised. In recent years, the buildings surrounding Mifa have been acquired, and two of them have already been demolished.
“The logistics plan we had initially developed turned out to be too expensive. At one point, I took my daughters’ coloured pencils and sketched the new buildings and a new conceptual logistics plan onto a site map. We later developed this together and substantiated it with data. It is a dream coming true when I see that this concept will become reality in the coming years. In April 2026, we will take one of the biggest steps in this plan: the construction of the new surface treatment line.”
Further professionalisation is also an ongoing project within Mifa. Two years ago, ‘The power of precision’ was launched – a phrase that continually reminds both customers and colleagues that we operate at Champions League level.