Becoming the best in the world
Sofia Wiwen-Nilsson
Head of Marketing and Communications
The Envirotainer workshop technicians at the Amsterdam station are true specialists. That’s why containers are sent to them when an issue can’t be solved. But surely some issues just can’t be fixed? Well, so far the team has never been defeated by a single container. We find out what makes these world-beaters tick – and his name is Juan.
Juan Rooze is the Repair Lead, heading up the repair & maintenance team at Envirotainer’s Amsterdam Competence Center.
Juan only joined Envirotainer in April 2020 as a repair technician, and was then promoted to Repair Lead in August 2021, so it’s been a quick rise. But, as Juan says, that’s what working at Envirotainer is like: “If the company sees potential in you, then they give you the possibility to grow. And they saw a future in me.”
That’s the kind of environment Juan thrives in – and it’s an environment he is also keen to build up within his team.
Competence gets results
We’ll get to the importance of the team later. First, we need to understand what Juan and his colleagues do – and why they’re the best in the business.
Along with ground handling services, Envirotainer’s Amsterdam station is a competence center for repair and maintenance, getting containers ready and available for the next customer and their life-changing pharmaceutical cargo. “Containers come to us with signs of damage or wear and tear,” explains Juan. “And we fix them. From a refrigeration leakage to a faulty compressor.”
Because the containers are reused hundreds of times to give customers the availability they need and to maximize sustainability, it’s vital that Envirotainer’s repair and maintenance service is best in class.
Meet the container whisperers
This is where the Amsterdam station leads the way. Containers that can’t be repaired elsewhere in the Envirotainer network of 60 stations are sent to Amsterdam to be investigated and repaired thanks to their leading expertise.“I always look like to look back on the week and see all the container issues we solved … we’ve never had a container we couldn’t fix!” he says, clearly proud of his team and their capabilities.
Because it never takes long to get back to the team, which is Juan’s job to manage and lead, but also his passion: “We are one big team. Together with the ground handlers, everybody is helping each other. So we’re all the same but with different strengths and responsibilities.”
Stronger and stronger
People’s strengths are something Juan takes into account when he’s planning which technicians will be working on which containers. Because the team is about leveraging everyone’s best skills to help the team deliver – and make each container reliably secure and available whenever the next customer needs it.
Strengths can also be built up through training, which is an important focus at Envirotainer where continuous improvement is the aim. Every month, each technician spends a minimum of one hour –but sometimes as many as three or four – doing online training through the Envirotainer Academy and its certified trainers. Whatever the technicians need to do to keep growing, developing and staying ahead of the cold chain container game.
So what’s Juan’s own special strength? He’s too much of a team player to say. But if we took a guess it would be exactly that: he’s a world-class team player who cares about the people he works with and, ultimately, the job they’re all there to do. So, despite all his planning and helping his colleagues be the best, what do you think he does when the unexpected happens?
“I leave the computer, grab my toolbox and help out. That’s what a real team does.”
Panel
Name: Juan Rooze
Job: Repair Lead for container repair and maintenance
Location: Envirotainer’s Amsterdam Competence Center, the Netherlands
Family: Wife, 2 sons
Hobbies: Driving and touring holidays with the family
If you – or someone you know – are interested in joining Juan and his team of technicians in Amsterdam, then keep an eye out for job vacancies here: