United States Home Services Markets News Portal About us Vacancies 24 Branches The power to care +31 184 606 600 Fuel surcharge December 10,62% 1930 - 1970 From cattle truck to the first flatbed semi-trailer Dirk van der Vlist registered with the Chamber of Commerce in Dordrecht in 1930. His business approach had been multifunctional from the start: plumber, electrician, bicycle repair shop, taxi, garage and transport company. He owned a number of bicycles, a six-cylinder Buick that served as a taxi, and a Ford truck. The next purchase was a second truck, a Chevrolet, for a thousand Dutch guilders. Dirk van der Vlist and his brother-in-law, Jan Huisman, initially only drove cattle for local farmers with these two trucks. The routes covered by Van der Vlist vehicles were limited to their own region: straw, potatoes and beet for farmers in the Alblasserwaard and Vijfherenland regions, with an occasional trip to North Brabant, and cattle to and from the markets in the major cities. In 1950, at the age of fourteen, Jaap van der Vlist joined his father as the youngest employee. During the first few years he mainly worked as a co-driver and the later on as a driver. In 1964, Van der Vlist purchased its first flatbed semi-trailer. Three days a week Van der Vlist transported Atlas earthmoving machines for Hans van Driel in Tiel. 1930 - 1970 1970 - 1990 Years of specialisation, expansion and internationalisation Once the decision was made to start with flatbed semi-trailer transport, Van der Vlist quickly grew into a specialist transport company of note. Special and heavy transport became a specialisation. Van der Vlist specialised in the transport of luxury yachts, amongst other things. The activities were also further expanded in the area of special and heavy transport for the construction industry. In 1976, the first expansion took place through the establishment of Van der Vlist Rijssen BV. In 1980 Cheron was bought, which moved to Zeebrugge in 2003. In 1984 Holtrop Van der Vlist BV was established in Assen. In the 1980s, the brothers Dirk, Nico and John van der Vlist joined the company. 1970 - 1990 1990 - 2009 From freight forwarder to logistics service provider Transport from A to B was no longer enough. Customers demanded a service package in which products are distributed from the factory gate to the customer's door. In addition to road transport, transport companies also needed to focus on transport by sea, inland waterways, rail and air. The companies would also take related activities such as storage into their own hands. 1991 was a milestone in the history of Van der Vlist. In the same year, European Transport Systems was founded, the current Van der Vlist Technical Services BV and Logistics BV. This marked the beginning of the conversion from a "traditional" road transport company to a modern logistics company. Van der Vlist provided the complete logistics for Korean and Japanese customers of earthmoving machines, bulldozers and dumpers. Starting with transport by barge to a seaport and ending with storage in Groot-Ammers or Moerdijk, where Van der Vlist also acquired several hectares at both locations in early 1992. During these years, Van der Vlist experienced international growth. In 1993 an office was opened in Barcelona and in 1994 Van der Vlist Poland was founded. Branches were then established in St. Petersburg (1998) and Hull (2001). For large (turn-key) projects, Van der Vlist established a separate company in 1996: Van der Vlist Projects BV. 1990 - 2009 2009 - 2017 Innovation This period was characterised by an accelerated development of know-how. Van der Vlist, for example, started focusing on the development of lighter, multi-purpose transport combinations. Assembly work started increasing because the earthmoving machines no longer arrived as whole units, but in parts. During these years, work was carried out on the automation and thereby the optimisation of the internal processes, among other things by means of a new ERP system. In 2009, Van der Vlist Modular Transport BV was founded due to the increase in heavy freight such as wind turbines, trams and heavy construction machinery. Van der Vlist Logistics BV was founded in 2010 to help customers meet the increasing demand for multimodal transport, 4PL services and transport beyond Western Europe. In 2014, Van der Vlist Germany was established to meet the growing demand for transport, with the associated permits, escorts and cabotage regulations. 2009 - 2017 2017 - present Digitisation and transparency During these years, further digitalisation of planning systems and administrative processes took place and the customer portal was launched. For the customers, this meant that data is shared and systems started working together with the aim of optimising the logistics chain. The Speciaal & Zwaartransport BV, Modulair Transport BV and Logistics BV companies moved to a new location in Schelluinen to create more space in Groot-Ammers for storage and technology. Van der Vlist Projecten BV will be moving in 2020 to new premises in Groot-Ammers with even more indoor and outdoor storage space. In Moerdijk, a substantial number of square metres will be added to meet the increasing demand for storage and handling of wind turbines, sheet piling and construction machinery. In 2020, Van der Vlist France was established to better serve the local market. 2017 - present Copyright © 2021 Van der Vlist Request a quote Subscribe to the newsletter General terms and conditions Privacy policy Certifications