Handy all-rounders on strings (Painting trade)
They see themselves as an extension of painting companies. Certified to the strictest standards, ATI Abseiltechnieken gets to those places where the craftsman or woman cannot reach.
At ATI Abseiltechnieken, they would rather have a painter who wants to learn abseiling than the other way around. ‘The first trick at our company is abseiling,’ co-owner Jorrit van Deynen knows. ‘But that is relatively easy to learn. Painting is not for everyone, you need a certain skill and often it has to be done within a certain time.’
Some 15 years ago, he himself did not think he would become a Handy Harry on a string either. Van Deynen was in the lecture halls of the Hanzehogeschool in Groningen when his brother Jeroen founded ATI Abseiltechnieken. ‘He worked in offshore, but no longer felt like being away from home so often. I would do the office work within his company. But things soon got so busy that I had to step in as an abseiler too, having obviously taken courses for that.’
ATI is not necessarily on earth to reach as high as possible. It is, however, to get to those places that a painter or other craftsman cannot normally reach. ‘We see ourselves as an extension of painting companies,’ says Van Deynen. Noting that painting is just one of the Frisian company’s activities. ‘We prefer to have very handy people who can do everything. Our work has great diversity. One moment you are hanging above water for facade cleaning, the next you are in a confined space such as a tank or shaft to weld and the next you are painting a church tower.’
Like last summer, the Roman Catholic church in Sint Nicolaasga. A home game. ‘Painting the window frames and ornaments.’ Nice work, Van Deynen thinks. ‘In industry, where we also come a lot, you see chimneys and gas bulbs. On a monument like this church, you have a very nice view.’ Enjoyment is nice, but when working at height, safety is the top priority. ATI’s five employees, and collaborating self-employed workers, are therefore always secured to two ropes, each with its own anchor point. ‘We are certified by the global institute Irata, for which we do an audit once every three years.’ The requirements are stringent. ‘Statistically, our work is even safer than that of a bus driver.’
Once at work, Van Deynen looks around carefully. ‘Because we get to places others hardly ever get to and therefore see things no one sees. Think of wood rot or leaks. I see it as our job to report things like that to the client.’
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