NTF-Aalborg is today a leading specialist in solutions in wire products and round steel for the food industry and the pharmaceutical industry and counts 35 employees, some of whom have been on a large part of the journey.
NTF-Aalborg A/S was established in June 1995 by 4 enthusiasts, including Tommy Søndergaard, who is still part of the group of owners. The company started at Hjulmagervej 15 in Aalborg primarily as a subcontractor of various components for the industry.
- What drove me to become self-employed was really that I was tired of many suppliers not being able to honor an agreement. It wasn't fair to the customers. I was sure I could do it much better," says Tommy.
The story behind ...
It was actually handball that brought Tommy to North Jutland. In connection with his education in trade and export, the opportunity arose to do an internship at Nordjysk Trådvarefabrik in Aalborg. It was the start of a career in sales and export at Nordjysk Trådvarefabrik, where Tommy, with his already acquired experience in export, was to be responsible for all exports in the company.
In 1995 - at the age of just 22 - Tommy Søndergaard founded NTF-Aalborg together with 3 other enthusiasts. In 1996, the company moved to a hall in the Perelly buildings at Hagensvej 18 in Stoevring. Later they bought the building at Hagensvej no. 17 where they are still located. Instead of 280 square meters, NTF-Aalborg now had almost 1,000 square meters to romp around in.
- The name NTF-Aalborg came about because we wanted to export right from the start and because we were convinced that Aalborg was world-renowned for the production of stainless steel equipment for the food industry. That's why the first export employee was hired as early as 1997," says Tommy.
From 2001 to 2007 Tommy Søndergaard continued to run the company alone, after which Jørgen Ravn joined as a partner. Jørgen came with an interesting sales and marketing background and a strength in export. The partnership between Jørgen and Tommy together set the direction for NTF-Aalborg, which was both ambitious and international.
- In addition to the fact that we of course take pride in doing a good job, we are very flexible and adapt to the customer's wishes and needs. To this day, it is still in our DNA that the customer is at the center, says Jørgen Ravn, who also says that he particularly remembers the time leading up to the financial crisis - and especially the learning that it generated. - "The financial crisis taught us to be extremely dynamic and quickly adaptable - and despite drastic cutbacks from 28 to 17 employees, we came out with black figures on the bottom line that year," he says.
New times - new investors ...
Over the years, NTF-Aalborg has succeeded in developing by being flexible, customer-facing and innovative. In 2014, NTF-Aalborg expanded its ownership circle with Winther Holding and Vækst-Invest Nordjylland and in 2020, current CEO Peter Petersen was a partner.
- With a strong group of owners and not least skilled and committed employees, NTF-Aalborg is well equipped to grow further in the years to come. Today, we can boast of being among the leaders in the production of hygiene products, process equipment and machine guarding in stainless steel for the food industry - and have an export share of approx. 40%, says Peter Petersen.
For further information, please contact Jørgen Ravn on tel: 41 91 86 80.