From ‘Klaroen’ (Clarion) to WAP’s

On 12 September 1949, Picañol employees saw the first edition of 'De Klaroen', an initiative of the Picañol Brass Band that contained news about the factory and the Brass Band. Two years later, the company issued the first edition of WAP’s news (Weef Automaten Picañol) and 1,000 copies were produced. The paper aimed at building even stronger ties between the company and its employees and at communicating the latest factory news to a broader audience. Much attention was given to the social role of the company outside the daily working routine, with plenty of articles on the efforts of the different sports teams that were born in the company. Later editions would also carry news about foreign trips of Picañol’s executive members, and interviews with journalists became a regular item in the column ‘Penechos’. Soon to be pensioners were sure to find their extensive curriculum vitae in the magazine just before leaving the company.

Field technicians

A rule of thumb for any company is that there is no advertising like word of mouth. As such we shouldn’t forget the efforts of countless people operating in the frontline - the people who install and start up the machines at the client’s location: the field engineers. They formed an indispensible chain between Picañol and its clients. Their tasks included the assembly and start-up of new machines and revamping of old ones, and they were also responsible for testing test machines and instructing our clients' mechanics. At the end of 1947, Roland Desquirez, head of the field engineering division had to fly to Argentina for an inspection of Omnium weaving machines at Jules Steverlynck’s Algodonera Flandria. As installation guides were not available at the time, all that engineers had to go by was their experience. Therefore, chief installer Maurits Dufromont quickly put together a ‘Manuel de réglage’ during the annual holiday leave, for which newcomer Tony Debruyne provided the necessary illustrations. Catalan employee Romero supplied a Spanish translation to make it understandable for local users. Some assignments were short, others lasted for many months. Some of them had to be carried out under difficult circumstances and accommodation and working conditions could prove to be quite an adventure. Some people worked in their native country; others were stationed abroad for years on end, an obvious reason for some of the marriages to a local ‘belle’ that took place. Living among people with a different native language, a different culture and sometimes completely different habits wasn’t always easy. In addition, due to the many vaccines they carried against tropical diseases, field engineers ran the risk of being considered drug addicts. And taking pictures of Picañol weaving machines at an assembly mission in Yugoslavia during the communist regime was enough to be considered a spy and to be taken to the police station. The journey to faraway countries was also quite an experience. Airplanes seemed to be the best way to travel, although landing in a tropical forest would often require the help of local authorities to clear the landing strip of cows and wild animals. The field engineering division comprised just six people in 1950: Raf Versaevel, Hector Seynaeve, Jerome Leire, Georges Anseeuw, Jules Verhas and Robert Carrein. However, their number was steadily growing. (picture: Roland Desquirez with a ‘nargile’ or Arab water pipe during a visit at the Egyptian weaving mill MISR in Helouan)

Foundation of the Picañol Brass band

Picañol also made a contribution in a musical sense: 1947 saw the inauguration of the Picañol Brass Band. A few musically talented staff members joined forces and founded a music company, with the initial intention of playing at company parties. Under the inspiring leadership of Chairman Maurits Quaghebeur and co-founder (and saxophonist) Daniel Debrouwer, and with Etienne Ossieur as conductor, the band took their first trip – by tram – to Zillebeke. And it was there, in the gardens of Jaime Picañol’s castle close to the Zandberg, that they delivered a serenade to their Honorary President, a role that would be assumed by Bernard Steverlynck in the following year. By 1949, the musicians of the Brass Band were playing in their own band uniform. From its early establishment the Brass Band participated in the annual Sint-Eloois fest and the St. Cecilia fest. The first cross-border performance took place in 1951, when a bus convoy transported the band to the ITMA exhibition in Lille. Every year the band would make several trips to celebrate large weaving machine orders, such as to Almelo in the Netherlands. The Picañol band has made an important contribution to recreation, both in and (far) outside the Westhoek. (picture: the brass band in 1947)

Cross-border expansion

Until then, the Omnium sales area was limited to the geographic region that was relatively close to Ypres: besides Belgian firms, customers included a couple of small-sized weavers in the north of France and a few companies in the Netherlands and Germany. The time seemed right for convincing larger weaving companies of the quality of the products, and with that in mind, Picañol signed up for its first participation at the international Hannover trade fair in 1947. Despite the small scale of that particular show, it did result in a small geographic extension of Picañol’s sales area. However, the very large buyers still remained out of reach. The 1948 annual trade fair in Utrecht marked the company’s first successful steps into the Dutch market. Led by General Manager Maurice Huvelle, the sales team visited as many potential clients as possible to convince them of the quality of the Picañol weaving machines. Their efforts involved considerable inventiveness and perseverance. Machine documentation was still very limited and computers had obviously not been invented yet. All drawing had to be done by hand, making it a time-consuming affair. In 1949, Picañol employed 400 staff, who in turn delivered six weaving machines per day.

Establishment of the spare parts department

In 1947, the company did not yet have a spare parts department; any parts required were manufactured and supplied by the engineering agency. However, along with the need for better coordination of machine monitoring and follow-up came the need for a more organized spare parts department. The company turned to Robert Bastil, who had been with the engineering agency for some time. Together with Gilbert Minnekeer, he managed the set-up of a new spare parts department. A fully qualified designer, Robert appeared to have the required capabilities to study problems on site and apply technical changes at the client’s location. At this moment in time, Picañol carried only one model of the ‘Omnium’, whereas the competition was marketing a broad range of narrow and light machines. Still, there were very few constructors that offered broad and robust weaving machines. As the name suggests, the Omnium was capable of processing many types of yarn, varying from light gauze, curtains and voiles to suits for workmen and ultra-strong corduroy fabrics. This would prove to be a key factor in the company’s success. It enabled Picañol to make more simple weaving machines, and offered its clients the added advantage of having to stock very few spare parts. Through close monitoring of the manufacturing process, the company was able to guarantee highly precise finishing of the spare parts. This added to the Omnium’s reputation as a highly reliable machine.