Ron van Breukelen, BEng MBA

Procurement and Supply Chain Management

Utrecht, Utrecht, Netherlands

About

I am a seasoned Procurement and Supply Chain professional with over 20 years of experience leading complex, global operations. Today, my mission is to move procurement from "tactical ordering" to Strategic Agent Management. I help discrete manufacturing companies navigate the transition from manual, error-prone workflows to AI-augmented procurement ecosystems. I don’t just deliver slide decks; I implement secure, local AI frameworks and automated "agentic" workflows that deliver immediate ROI. What I bring to the table: * Deep Domain Expertise: 20+ years in discrete manufacturing, including global sourcing (Far East, India, Americas) and setting up FDI production facilities in SE Asia. * Operational Turnarounds: A proven track record of converting operational inefficiency into profitability through re-engineering and intelligent inventory management. * Technical Orchestration: I deploy AI in stages—from secure local chat for RFPs to full Agentic Agency using n8n and LangChain/LangGraph. Whether you need Interim Management to navigate a departmental restructuring or a Strategic Roadmap to integrate AI into your ERP, I provide the hands-on execution required to maintain your competitive edge. Let’s connect if you are ready to stop managing spreadsheets and start managing an automated procurement ecosystem.

Experience

  • Discipline Lead Supply Chain at Huisman Equipment B.V.
    Jan 2020 - Jan 2023 · 3 yrs 1 mo

    • Provide leadership and management to cross-continent teams of Supply Chain Professionals. • Build and develop Purchasing Teams and Category Management for a wide range of commodities. • Standardisation of processes and automation of execution of the work.

  • Managing Director at engies B.V.
    2017 - 2020 · 3 yrs

    Marketing, Sales, Development, Manufacturing, Installation and Commissioning of Industry 4.0 (IIoT) turnkey hardware and software solutions for LEAN (OEE) optimization and digital twinning specifically tailored towards SME manufacturing companies. Full P&L responsibility: • 2018 Turn-key delivery of an OEE hardware and software IoT system for an injection moulding factory in the Netherlands. • 2019 Turn-key delivery of an OEE hardware and software IoT system for an injection moulding factory in the Czech Republic.

  • Supply Chain Director at Mokveld Valves bv
    2015 - 2020 · 5 yrs

    Member of the Management Team reporting to the MD, managing 25 FTE's divided over four departments, responsible for supply chain and outsourced manufacturing. Highlights include: • Introduction of an integrated software solution to automate the creation of shipping documents, • Introduction of e-procurement to automate the operational purchasing process.

  • Procurement Manager at Mokveld Valves
    2005 - 2014 · 9 yrs

    Professionalization of the procurement process: • Development and start-up of a manufacturing plant in S.-E. Asia as a Direct Foreign Investment, including setting up of a local supply chain. • Introduction of e-procurement to automate the operational purchasing process. • Development of category strategies for global sourcing. • Optimizing purchasing processes per spend category. • Training of purchasing personnel in the Enterprise Resource Planning system (EPR). • Redesigning of the planning and expediting processes. • Improved warehouse performance with intelligent cross picking and carousel storage units. • Set-up realtime global inventory and stock control for critical components. • Development of global sourcing activities in low-cost countries.

  • Heerema Marine Contractors Nederland BV (Full-time · 13 yrs 1 mo)
    • Teamlead Subcontracting
      2001 - 2005 · 4 yrs

      Responsible for the subcontracting activities of Heerema Marine Contractors. Project team member for the development of HMC’s logistics, including the design of an organisation, development of procedures, development and integration of supporting ICT systems. Project team member to further professionalize and improve purchasing at HMC to worldclass standard.

    • Installation Engineer
      1992 - 2001 · 9 yrs

      Technical preparation and offshore support for the offshore installation of Oil and Gas Platforms worldwide. Technical business development support for deepwater pipeline installation. Seconded in Norway and the USA.