Nooteboom Trailers is a family-owned company that, since 1881, has been providing integral and innovative solutions for exceptional road transport. The company designs and builds trailers for clients worldwide—both for series production and custom-made models.

At Nooteboom Trailers, Engineering, Quality and Logistics operate from a strategic purchasing perspective, following a clear commodity strategy. The commodity “steel – construction” applies to Zuidberg. “Zuidberg has been supplying sheet metal for our trailers for about ten years,” says Ben. “We use this sheet metal, among other things, for the bumper — a heavy piece of steel that strengthens and protects the trailer. Zuidberg distinguishes itself with a wide range of capabilities. From cutting and bending to welding and coating — their employees have a lot of knowledge and skill.”

AN EXTENSION OF THE TEAM

Erik views Zuidberg as an extension of Nooteboom Trailers’ production process. “Transparency is very important within our partnership. If we know in time that Zuidberg’s workload is increasing, we can temporarily shift to other suppliers. And when they have more capacity, we ramp up production again. This way, we prevent delivery issues during peak periods.”

At the same time, both parties make better use of their shared technical knowledge. “For complex components, we often intentionally leave part of the design open, so that Zuidberg can provide input,” adds Ben. “That works well—Zuidberg’s commercial team is technically skilled, which allows us to come up with smart, efficient solutions together.”

SHARPENING PROCESS AND PRICE

The collaboration is a two-way learning process. “Soon, Zuidberg’s employees will visit us for a training session on inventory management,” says Erik. “In return, they can share their expertise in steelworking with us. This exchange keeps both sides inspired to continuously improve processes—and, as a result, pricing—without compromising on quality or delivery reliability.”