History
More than a century of industry expertise...
When Focquet originally set up its headquarters in Brussels in 1892, its core business was the sale, purchase, hire and repair of electric generators, steam-powered equipment and gas-powered machinery. In 1898, the company decided to build a new factory in the Brussels suburb of Vilvoorde to take care of heavy engineering. The Brussels HQ has continued to work in electrics. The company’s market then focused chiefly on Belgium and the Belgian Congo, as well as countries like Egypt.
When diesel motors gradually took over from steam-driven motors in the 1950s, it sounded the death knell on Focquet’s sales of steam-powered equipment and forced the company to shift to reconditioned electrically driven machinery. With the arrival of the third generation (Charles-François Focquet in 1974 and Bruno Focquet in 1983), the company was given fresh impetus, leading to the renovation of the Vilvoorde site in the early 1990s. Since the company was restructured, Focquet has experienced steady and uninterrupted growth, with a 320% increase in turnover in the space of only seven years. In addition, a new department specialising in Allweiler pumps was set up, with Focquet acting as the service centre for the whole of Belgium.
Focquet’s biggest milestone was in 1996, when the company decided to market new slipring and squirrel-cage motors under its own trademark: EUROPEAN ELECTRIC COMPANY (2€C). These motors rapidly acquired a reputation for superior quality at competitive prices, winning over a growing clientele in Belgium, Europe and beyond. They were followed by other new equipment, including:
Power transformers or new direct-current motors.
Starting motors.
Variable speed drives AC/DC.
Alternators.
Generators.
Electric power generators.
Two major projects are planned in the future. First, as the company continues to grow year by year, it will move its operations to new premises to the south of Brussels. This will increase the company’s storage space to more than 5,500 m2, confirming its primary asset: an inventory that enables it to fulfil and deliver customer orders speedily. Second, the company is considering establishing a customer service department to determine with customers the most effective resources and technology required to optimise facilities, as well as to conduct on-site controls such as: balancing, detection of technical defects, checking bearings, laser alignment and thermography.
In 2009, the fourth generation entered into active service in the person of Charles-Frédéric Focquet.