Semiconductor manufacturing equipment requires extreme precision. Components and modules must meet tolerances measured in microns and, in some cases, nanometres. At that scale, even a tiny variation can affect how the entire machine performs.
Factory precision is only part of the challenge. As semiconductor manufacturing grows across Asia, equipment makers need expertise closer to their customers. At the same time, they must maintain quality, control costs and shorten delivery and cycle times as machines become more complex.
Meeting that need called for the right mix of expertise and production capacity across regions, all connected through one partner. That led Aalberts to acquire Grand Venture Technology Limited, known formerly as GVT, in October 2025.
GVT adds more than geographical reach
GVT brings five sites in Singapore, Malaysia and China, with expertise in precision machining, complex sheet metal manufacturing, cleanroom assembly, testing and full system integration. Its advanced sheet metal capability complements Aalberts’ European network, while teams in Europe contribute specialist engineering and advanced mechatronics. Together, they form a network of 14 locations across the United States, Europe and Southeast Asia.
That network combines system and product design engineering with capabilities across frames and modules, machine conditioning, precision systems, assembly and manufacturing. Aalberts can then match each part of the work with the team and location best placed to deliver it.
Work may move between regions, but the customer has one connected partner throughout.
“More locations only matter if they work as one network,” says Patrick de Groot, CEO Aalberts advanced mechatronics. “A product may need specialist engineering in one region and volume manufacturing in another. We bring those teams together, so the customer does not have to coordinate work across different locations.”
Already working for customers
Teams in Southeast Asia and Europe are already working together on customer requests received by GVT, drawing on capabilities from both regions. This allows Aalberts to deliver solutions more effectively than any one team could alone.
A leading semiconductor equipment manufacturer (OEM) has also formally qualified GVT to manufacture an established product currently made in Europe, with volumes expected to increase from 2027. Aalberts is in advanced discussions with other OEMs about moving production of other products from the USA and Europe to Southeast Asia. Making them in the region would help reduce production costs while maintaining the required quality and drawing on engineering expertise from across the Aalberts network.
Precision engineering with greater reach
For customers, this means support closer to where they operate and access to wider expertise through one relationship. For each product, Aalberts can bring together the capabilities and production location needed to meet performance, quality and cost targets, helping equipment makers develop the next generation of machines.
GVT also reflects how Aalberts approaches acquisitions. Aalberts looks for businesses that add new capabilities to the wider network, connect regions and create more value for customers. Another example is the acquisition of Post en Dekker, an Amsterdam-based engineering firm with system and product design expertise. That expertise can now be used across regions, helping teams engage with customers earlier and turn technical requirements into designs ready for manufacture.
Customers may come to Aalberts with an early idea, an existing product that needs improving or a design ready for high volume production. Aalberts can bring together the right expertise and locations at any of those points. The goal is a product that performs as it should and can be made wherever it is needed, to the required quality, at the right cost and in the right volumes.
Facts & figures
- 14 locations: Network across the US, Europe and Southeast Asia
- 5 GVT sites: Across Singapore, Malaysia and China
- 3 regions: Connected through one engineering and manufacturing network
- 2025: GVT acquisition completed
- 2027: Production volumes for a qualified semiconductor OEM product expected to increase
- 1 connected partner: Combining engineering, manufacturing, assembly and testing capabilities
