A 3D scanner and a lot of technical know-how. Those are Michael Tomerius most valuable tools when he helps Onspot customers all over Europe. Read more here
From the city of Krefeld, it’s a 20-minute drive westbound to the border to the Netherlands. If you cross the river Rhein and go east, you’ll quickly find yourself in the enormous Ruhrgebiet, Germany’s largest urban area. You are also close to Belgium and have a few hours’ drive to France.
It’s safe to say that Michael Tomerius has his office at the center of Europe’s truck and transport industries. All the major truck manufacturers on the continent have production facilities that are easy to reach from Krefeld.
So, the office is not where Michael spends most of his time.
– I can be at a major truck manufacturer in Belgium on Monday to show them how to install our product on a heavy truck. On Tuesday it might be a customer that needs help with their installation on a transport van. No day is like the other, says Michael Tomerius.
He started his working life as a car mechanic, and four years ago he graduated with a master exam in automotive mechanics. Working with Onspot gives him a broader perspective on the business of moving people and things.
– It’s great to see what our product can do in various settings. The most unusual thing I’ve worked with so far is probably the harbor terminal trucks in large Dutch ports. They also need to work in snow and ice.
Another development is the ongoing electrification. At the latest IAA trade show in Hanover, Michael Tomerius was present to look at one of his many installations: Onspot fitted on the new eActros, Mercedes-Benz first all-electric truck.
– It was great to see our product in that environment, says Tomerius.
So, what about that 3D scanner? It is probably the most important tool for fitting Onspot to new types of vehicles.
Onspot is already prepared to be fitted in almost every truck model on the market. But new variants emerge all the time, and if a customer has a variant that is not yet in Onspot’s system, Michael pays av visit with his scanner to start the process for the development of a new fitting bracket.
The process starts with Michael scanning the driving axle part of a vehicle chassis from underneath, which takes 1-2 hours. The 3D picture is then sent to the Onspot technical development team in Sweden. They will analyze the photo and use it for measurement and as a base for CAD drawings of the new bracket kit.
This method is much quicker than it used to be, before the 3D scanner. From the newly taken picture to a new bracket kit, the time is approximately four weeks.
– No matter what we do, the important thing is always to have our customer’s truck out on the road as soon as possible. I like that mindset, says Michael Tomerius.
Michael Tomerius
Product Manager - Special Vehicles & Technical Support, Onspot Europe
Age: 28
Lives: Krefeld, Germany
Family: Single
Outside the job: Fishing, both freshwater and ocean. ”I’ve been to northern Norway probably 16-18 times, fishing for halibut and cod.” Also member of a local hobby icehockey team.
