Advionics, the Oostkamp-based global player in high-frequency electronics, recently launched not only an innovative radar antenna for frigates but will also be commissioning a multi-story production and R&D building later this year. Not a moment too soon, it appears.
“Some customers in the military market are asking us to double our production capacity. So we are compelled to scale up our entire production apparatus quickly, and at the same time, we see opportunities to further digitize. But we are not only seeing growth in defense. Our technology is also used in civil aviation and the medical sector, and demand is rising there as well,” says CEO Jan Bonte.
For four decades, the Siemenslaan was the base for Oostkamp’s largest employer: the German electronics giant Siemens. Around the turn of the century, the electromechanical components division was transformed into the current TE Connectivity, and the Sicherungstechnik [Safety Technology] division was sold to Airbus (EADS) and later resold to a Swiss private equity player. Then-CEO Jan Bonte and a colleague executed a management buy-out in 2016 and subsequently merged Advionics with the complementary Intersoft Electronics from Olen to form the Intersoft Electronics Group. Waterland became the group’s majority shareholder in 2019.
What does the Intersoft Electronics Group look like?
“Advionics is the largest company. In addition, the group has Belgian branches in Olen and Zottegem, and in Portugal, Italy, Germany, Australia, and the USA. Advionics’ core competence is high-frequency electronics, with radar equipment to identify aircraft in civil or military aviation as a key application. We also manufacture the power amplifier for Link 16 data communication, which is found in all fighter jets worldwide.
On the other hand, we build high-frequency high-power modules for a Walloon company, which they use in proton therapy machines for cancer treatment and in sterilizers.
Our know-how for military applications is thus used much more broadly, and the intention remains to keep investing in those other sectors and finding new applications. With the aging population, that medical branch will keep growing, and civil aviation has also taken off again after the corona dip. We certainly don’t want to be dependent on just one market segment.”
What is your corporate strategy?
“We work on 3 pillars. Shortly after our split from the Airbus Group, 99% of our revenue came from production for them — now under the name Hensoldt. To be less dependent on a single client, we want to reduce the current 65% to 50% of our revenue. A new pillar is starting new collaborations for this purpose. We want to grow significantly in this area, driven by market demand and our own strength: industrializing a prototype and scaling its production up to a large-volume series. As a one-stop shop for third parties, they only need to provide the design of that prototype and the sales of the end product. We take over everything else, and if necessary, even the mechanical design and/or the EMC or military lab tests for product qualification. Now that military production capacity in Europe needs to be doubled, many companies are looking for partners who can realize this part of the chain for them.”
Is your third pillar developing your own products?
“Yes, with our current showpiece being our non-rotating IFF, a radar antenna for frigates. It has 64 radiating elements that are electronically switched and, unlike non-rotating [traditional] antennas, can compensate for the ship’s roll and pitch.
It is a very important product for us. It does ‘sting’ a bit that the Belgian army isn’t using it yet. We are working on it, together with our ministers, but it is a challenge you cannot solve in one day. I was naturally a sprinter, but I have learned that as a CEO, it is sometimes better to be a marathon runner.” (laughs)
How do you experience the changed geopolitical situation?
“It has been very noticeable, especially in the last year, because various customers are asking us to double our production capacity, and immediately at that. Everything we deliver is sold instantly. We feel the effect not only in series production, but there is also a hugely increased demand for spare parts and maintenance and repairs. It is clear that all devices are effectively being used. Our radars help monitor European airspace, and lately, more than once, a Russian plane has ‘accidentally’ or ‘by mistake’ crossed one border or another. That increase in volumes is no flash in the pan either; it will continue until at least 2030. I don’t see it happening like with corona, where there is a peak first and overcapacity afterwards that drives demand down again. The reliability of our partners is under pressure: Russia, China, and even with the USA, it will never be business as usual again. Europe will have to become more self-reliant and independent again, because it is illogical for us to rely entirely on another continent for our safety. You can view the geopolitical situation as a threat or a major uncertainty, but it is also a huge opportunity to strengthen our own European industry. You do notice with the Flemish Government that there is now a genuine active interest in making this happen.”
Public opinion is divided on those military billions.
“Wel, we zien dat in het verleden de Belgische defensie niet zo actief heeft ingezet op industriële participatie, of met een beter woord op de ‘sociale return’. Men gaat nu gigantisch investeren in militair materiaal, maar het zou beter overkomen bij de mensen als ze zien dat er ook werkgelegenheid mee gecreëerd wordt. En niet alleen low profile jobs, maar ook hoogtechnologische jobs. Die hoogtechnologie kunnen we later ook voor civiele toepassingen “Well, we see that in the past, Belgian Defense did not focus so actively on industrial participation, or to put it better, on ‘social return’. They are now going to invest gigantically in military material, but it would come across better to the people if they see that employment is being created with it. And not just low-profile jobs, but high-tech jobs too. We can later use that high technology for civil applications as well. Then you actually get a double social return: the industry arrives at new developments that can be deployed polyvalently, and we create added value with new and qualitative jobs. From contacts with the Defense purchasing department as well as with Flemish Minister-President Diependaele, I notice that they are on board with that story. So we have a clear positive signal. At the end of April, Voka West Flanders brought the industry together with the general responsible for purchasing in the army. Those are important initiatives, because if we can join forces there between the army, the government, and the companies and work together in the right direction, a lot becomes possible. Because in the past, at Advionics, we developed and produced mainly for other NATO countries—USA, Germany, France — and to a lesser extent for Belgium. Via that return, we could be integrated into new value chains of European OEM companies.”
Your new building is multi-story. A conscious choice?
“Yes. Expansion was urgently needed. We still had 6,000 m² of land available, but by building in two layers, we only used 3,000 m². This way, we still have room to expand in the future and can build another similar building. It is a two-stage rocket we can execute. Actually—given the great scarcity of business parks—it should be a general guideline to utilize production space vertically as well. Downstairs in the building, there will be a spacious production hall where the main material flow will run. On the upper floor, more ad hoc production will take place, our development department with about 30 employees by now will be located there, and a new cafeteria will make the working environment much more pleasant for all staff members. The intention is to put the ground floor into use by the end of this year and the rest by the beginning of next year.”
What is your biggest challenge in further growth?
“In the coming 3 years, we want to go from 200 to 250 employees. Finding machine operators who are also willing to work in shifts is certainly not easy, but we are searching very broadly. On the one hand, we have vacancies for technically educated people, from the former A2 electronics [technical secondary school] to bachelors to civil engineers. For this, we are looking across the entire range of technical educational institutions. In addition, we need people to solder and assemble our often tiny parts. These are usually women who have trained for a profession requiring fine motor skills, such as hairdressers, and whom we train further. Training is fundamental at Advionics, by the way. We have to accept that new people do not have the training we would like. That is why we have our own training program in electronics, with a basic course and advanced training at various levels. We will train the 50 new people for a year, where they learn by doing under constant supervision. That is burdensome for the organization, but it is something we have to go through to grow further.”
How far along are you with Industry 4.0 and AI?
“Het feit dat we onze productiecapaciteit versneld en sterk moeten opschalen, combineren we met een doorgedreven automatisatie en digitalisatie. Dat gaat heel goed samen. Normaal “We are combining the fact that we have to scale up our production capacity rapidly and significantly with thorough automation and digitization. That goes very well together. Normally you get quite a bit of headwind from people who fear they will lose their job. But for us, it is doubly positive: by automating, we partly solve the problem that we have to increase capacity and cannot find the people. Or rather: we do find them, but not in the right quantity and in the right timeframe. AI lies in the extension of digitization, which also offers possibilities to optimize logistical flow, paper flow, data analysis, etc. There are very many possibilities that we try to utilize to the maximum.”
Finally: what is Jan Bonte like as a leader?
“Two qualities are crucial for entrepreneurship: having a strategic vision and being passionate about your work. I like to help set the direction and am good at bringing structure to chaos. But people also know me as someone who keeps going, even after everyone else would have long since given up. I bend, but I always bounce back, and often stronger than before. I also find it important to have understanding and empathy for employees, and to give people who mean well a second chance if they fail.
I notice a lot of respect from the unions. They know that the company was suffering operational losses at the time of the takeover 10 years ago, and that we took a major personal risk back then. The turnaround was achieved. I am strongly value-driven, and that is my motivation: to further expand this company and give it a bright and stable future together with our development department. However, I notice that putting up a new building like this is no easy feat. You need a lot of persuasive power, and that is where my perseverance comes in handy.” (laughs)
