Where classic cleanroom projects often have to balance speed, budget, energy efficiency, and reliability, ABN manages to guarantee all four parameters simultaneously. Each project starts from the “Olympic Minimum”: a solid foundation on which all performance levels are already high. From there, customers can add their own emphasis without compromising on other aspects.
ABN Cleanroom Technology is an established name in Europe for designing and realizing ISO and GMP-compliant cleanrooms in highly regulated sectors. Their strength? An innovative approach through the Configure-to-Order Plus (CTO+) principle.
This flexibility is made possible by ADAPTUS, ABN's validated and pre-engineered system platform. This allows the company to create predictable, reliable cleanroom environments for critical applications – from hospital pharmacies and semiconductor manufacturing to defense projects like satellite components.
With a team of 36 employees and clear international ambition, ABN is firmly in its growth phase. By 2026, they are aiming for a revenue of 22 million euros, with projects already equally divided between Belgium and abroad. Recent expansions into Spain, Portugal, Poland, and Ireland underscore that international drive.
The challenge: gaining a grip on growth
The growth also brought complexity. In a project-driven organization like ABN, classic financial reports are not enough to truly steer.
Although P&L and balance sheet were available, in-depth insight was lacking:
- Which projects are truly profitable?
- Where do abnormalities originate?
- How do departments, activities, and contracts perform individually?
With service and maintenance contracts also in play, it became increasingly important to look beyond mere accounting figures.
The ambition became clear: to evolve from retroactive reporting to proactive, data-driven control.
The step to Business Intelligence
The migration of Microsoft NAV to Business Central in the cloud provided the ideal momentum to rethink reporting as well.
Power BI was already in use, but the bar was set higher. ABN Cleanroom Technology didn't just want reports, they wanted real insights. Data needed to be better structured, enriched, and above all, clearly visualized. Because the information was there, but the overview was at risk of being lost.
A collaboration that feels like it's in-house
The choice for Scapta was not coincidental. Trust was already there through previous experiences, but it was especially the way of collaborating that made the difference.
Scapta quickly familiarized itself with both the financial and operational context of ABN. Complex issues were translated into clear Power BI solutions, with strong data models and smart DAX logic.
What was particularly striking was the speed with which tangible results were achieved, without sacrificing quality. The collaboration quickly felt like an extension of the internal team, as if someone was sitting next to you, actively building along.
Fast results, lasting impact
The implementation proceeded pragmatically and focused, with short, interactive work sessions that achieved concrete progress each time.
Shortly after Business Central went live, ABN had usable dashboards. While initially mainly used by the CEO and CFO, its usage quickly expanded to project managers and other teams. Today, it is a daily tool, with data refreshed multiple times a day.
The power lies in the combination of data sources:
- Financial, project information, inventory data, and time registrations from Business Central
- budgets from Excel
Together, they form one coherent and reliable overall picture.
From figures to insights
Thanks to the collaboration with scapta, ABN today has not only access to data, but above all to insight.
Figures are clear, visual, and immediately usable in daily operations. Decisions are made faster and are better substantiated. At the same time, the flexibility of the solution allows for quick responses to new questions.
Or as it sounds internally: it feels like your reporting evolves as you work.
Outlook for the future
ABN Cleanroom Technology is looking ahead. The further rollout of Business Intelligence to other entities within the group, such as Poels, is already planned. Additionally, the company wants to delve deeper into project analysis and further refine the data platform.
Given the positive collaboration, it’s clear that Scapta will also continue to play a role in that story.
Conclusion
For ABN Cleanroom Technology means “clean” more than just the environments they build. It also stands for clear thinking, structuring, and decision-making.
With their CTO+ approach and the support of scapta, they keep not only their cleanrooms, but also their data perfectly under control.
In a sector where precision and reliability are paramount, that's precisely what makes the difference.
interview with Ivo Lemmens (CFO) & Yentl Box (Digital Marketer, Scapta).