Althea

Plastics

Althea Products was set up by Henk Altena in 1992. At the time Henk was taking on small commissions to make products using PVC material. This is something he did for himself on an overhauled welding machine on the outskirts of Vorden. The first orders consisted of high-frequency ‘bonding’ of changing mats for babies.

High-frequency welding distinguishes itself from other welding methods because the heat is not supplied from outside. Instead, the heat in the product is generated by means of a high-frequency electrical field. The end result is a very sturdy, waterproof, PVC product with a long life and an invisible joint. The technique is fast and highly precise.

There are only a handful of companies in The Netherlands that have mastered this technique. Because of this specialism, orders have flooded in and Althea has expanded into a high-frequency welding company with a seven-strong workforce. To cope with this expansion and the growing diversity of products, the company moved to Deventer in 2020.

Strong in building

The assortment is very broad, ranging from tarpaulins with rings, personalised place maps, poster covers and banners to borders for playing fields, sports fields or exhibition floors. The most important products are frame flashings and sealing rings for timber frame construction. During the factory production of timber frame constructions, the need for space for air and ventilation grilles has to be borne in mind. The customised sealing rings produced by Althea protect these grilles to ensure they are air- and watertight.

A new product is a door cover that has been developed in-house. This allows permanent doors to be placed during construction instead of temporary, emergency doors. These covers guarantee protection during building. Althea products are supplied to joinery works throughout The Netherlands – tailor-made, quality products that can be delivered very quickly. Because of the skilled technical knowledge, many types of plastic connections are possible.

This has led to exports to Germany. A firm there which makes table tennis tables needed playing field borders, but could not find them. They

had a tip about Althea Products and now Althea produces them. There is also a partnership with a Dutch company just over the border which is strong in producing plastics with images. Althea Plastics carries out the welding of PVC for the German customers of this firm.