Detlet – ARTFX

Europe’s largest supplier of industrial equipment turned 70 in 2021 and asked ARTFX to build a party. Kramp started as a family business from Varsseveld and grew into the supplier, advisor, and service provider for everything to do with industrial technology. Active in more than 65 countries and constantly expanding, they had every reason to celebrate their 70th anniversary with the hard-working team.

We would never turn down a good party, so we started planning this one for over 2,000 people. Due to Covid restrictions, the event was postponed from 2021 to 2020. Initially, ARTFX chose a terrific venue at Vliegveld Twente, but eventually we opted for a more intimate location, namely the backyard of the headquarters in Varsseveld, where the company had its roots from the beginning.

Together with createscapes, a creative communication agency, we designed the plans to fully immerse Kramp employees in the company’s 70-year history and mission. We built containers through which employees would roll in industrial trolley, learning about the Kramp universe through video, sound, and images.

With collaboration and an ’employer-first’ mentality close to the heart, Kramp wanted to highlight the people who make the work possible. Therefore, we built a large installation with 4-by-6-meter LED screens portraying individual Kramp staff – from previous generations to the newest on board.

We believe there is no party without music, so in addition to the immersive installations, ARTFX built the main stage with containers in the Kramp’ colors for the opening show, cover band, and presentations. We also created a club for people into electronic music, an arcade hall for fun games, and a mirror tent called The Paradiso that acted as a pub. As you can see, we know how to organize a large-scale event that feels intimate and personal to the visitors.

It’s a wrap! One of our yearly summer highlights: Dekmantel Festival. The ninth edition of the festival – defining the future of electronic music, navigating the limits of the musical spectrum, and having connoisseurs from all over the world flock to Amsterdam – was one for the books. Together with Dekmantel Festival and Amsterdamse Bos, we build a circular place for discovery, quality, and connection.

Liedeke, main producer ARTFX for Dekmantel Festival: “We are very proud of the longstanding collaboration between ARTFX, Dekmantel Festival and the Amsterdamse Bos. Because we are involved from the very first edition, build-up and breakdown are realized in no time. Dekmantel has a strong focus on finding sustainable solutions, and we support them in waste management and circularity. This way we keep improving ourselves”. Waste materials are being separated, for audiences as well as for crew members during the buildup and deconstruction of the site. Once again, free pocket ashtrays were handed out, to keep the lush fields of Amsterdamse Bos healthy and clean. And, new this year, we worked with a fifth garbage bin at the festival: the food waste collected here goes into a big composting machine. The compost that is generated finds its way back to the Amsterdamse Bos – closing the loop to restore the soil of the ground.

Again, we rebuild the now famous round main stage, which is designed like a puzzle. Liedeke: “Working together with the same producers every time, it’s the fourth edition we construct the enormous stage that takes a lot of thought and measuring, and that fits like a glove. We set out GPS points in a great 2D drawing of the terrain, and work from there”. New this year was The Nest stage, an open construction by set and production designer Bob Roijen (RAITO) who created an intimate stage with a slanted roof. With its dark, warm atmosphere and rays of sunlight coming through the roof, The Nest turned out to be a wonderful addition to the already proved Dekmantel stages.

On to the next one!