High-tech bending services from one of Europe’s specialists in bending technology, which have already been utilised on landmark projects such as the Burj Arab and Sports City-Qatar Tower, will be on show when Kersten Europe makes its debut at the Big 5 this month.

Having recently established a sales and marketing regional office in Dubai, the Netherlands-headquartered specialist is looking to further enhance its ties with its customers in the Middle East. With a promising project portfolio in the region, the company is also focusing on getting its UAE bending facility to be up and running during the second half of 2008.
Kersten Europe specialises in section bending, plate rolling, and aluminium bending which includes the bending and curving of ferro and non-ferro materials such as carbon steel, stainless steel and aluminium among others.
“At the Big 5 show, we will be promoting our entire product portfolio,” says Rabih Ayash, regional director of sales and marketing, Kersten Europe-Middle East, the regional office of the company.
Commenting on the show, he says: “The Big 5 show’s popularity among industry professionals in the seven fields covered by the show, its channelled lines of showcased industries, and its international reputation and high level of attendance by professionals are among the many factors that encouraged us to participate in the event.
This is coupled with the fact that although we have supplied few projects to the region before, this year marks our first physical presence in the market through the establishment of a sales and marketing office and the commencing of the construction of our UAE bending facility. Hence, the exhibition will no doubt help us to reinforce our name and lines of supply to a wide audience, especially in the Middle East countries.
“We are currently supplying bent steel for some projects via our bending facility in Holland. However, as soon as our bending facility here in the UAE is operational, we will be performing our bending works locally and we will be able to serve our customers even better, in terms of delivery and cost,” he adds.
Ayash continues: “While our products are not new to the region, our aim is to serve the market from within as opposed to our previous strategy of looking after the market from Europe. The recent upsurge in this market combined with in increased focus on aesthetics in building design has encouraged us to be physically present in the market and to offer our skills and experience in order to translate the architect’s creativity into reality.
“Although bending is a mechanical process in many aspects, yet there is a lot of skill and know-how that goes into it and this is reflected in the quality of the finished product and the capability to deliver.”
With more than 40 years of experience in section, plate, and aluminium bending, Kersten Europe currently represents the combined strength of production facilities in the Netherlands, Germany, Poland, and very soon the UAE.
Operating through an extensive range of modern section bending and plate rolling machines — including one of the biggest machines in Europe, Kersten Europe can process both standard and client-specific sections (ferro and non-ferro), with depths that can vary from 1 cm to 1 m.
“The company’s ability to bend pipes with diameters up to 508 mm is unique. The company’s specialty also includes three-dimensional spiral bending of heavy sections, a technique used when building tracks for roller coasters and in staircase construction,” he points out.
Established in 1961 in Wanssum, Holland, Kersten Europe is staffed by 150 skilled workers in its various production facilities with a turnover in excess of €15 million per year (more than $20 million). The company’s core business comprises the bending of profiles and plate material (ferro and non ferro), which includes section bending for various profiles like tubes, I sections, angles, channels, bars among others; the rolling of steel plates and special alloy plates like Hardox, Creusabro, Inconel and others; the bending of extruded aluminium sections; as well as 2D and 3D spiral bending.
The company’s joint division of projects and engineering supports clients during development, planning, and execution of projects with professional suggestions, a possible alternative, or a complete crafted design.
With a company’s slogan of “Bending technology and more”, Kersten Europe is focused on providing its customers with a comprehensive solution to all their requirements under one roof, through providing technical support through the dedicated projects and engineering department; machining services (CNC cutting, bevelling, among others); qualified welding procedures (automatic submerged arc welding, TIG, MIG/MAG and others); additional in-house fabrication works; outsourcing of raw materials and finishing; special services; and logistics.
The company’s bending capabilities covering:
• Tubes up to 508 mm diameter and 25 mm thick;
• Angles up to 400 by 400 by 25 mm;
• Beams up to 1,000 mm deep over the weak axis and 650 mm deep over the strong axis;
• Three-dimensional bending, a technique used in roller coasters and stairway construction
• Rolling of plates up to 100 mm in thickness; and
• Plates up to 3,550 mm wide;
The Kersten Europe is also equipped with a plasma/oxygen CNC cutting machine up to 4,500 mm wide and heat treatment facility.
The company’s recent project portfolio in the Gulf includes impressive names such as the Sports City-Qatar Tower in 2005-2006, where the contract involved the supply of bent tubes of 193.7 mm diameter and 273 mm diameter and the Kuwait Trade Centre this year where the contract involved the supply and bending of RHS 180X100X10 profiles. Earlier, in 1997, it had also provided its services for the Burj Al Arab hotel for bending of tubes 368 mm diameter. The firm has also been receiving many other inquiries across the Gulf which are expected to materialise into supply orders shortly.
“Construction activity is proceeding at a rapid pace in the region and our aim is to translate this market potential into work orders across the various fields relevant to our scope of supply,” concludes Ayash.
The company will be present at Stand B412 at Maktoum Hall at the Big 5 show.