10 Years of Robin

2020 is a special year for us. A weird year, sure, but still a special year for Robin.

Why? Because we turned 10! 

A decade in an unforgiving market is a pretty big achievement, and we couldn't let double-digits pass us by without marking the occasion. 

This year, we celebrated ten years of Robin with ten key milestones. We even used the first five of these achievements to count down the weeks until the launch of our newest drone radar, IRIS! It was all very exciting stuff. 

And check out the client celebrations, those captivating visuals tell some pretty amazing radar stories. They show radar has and continues to change the game in making airspace safer for humans and wildlife. 

1. The Fall of Binoculars

It’s 2012. We’re two years old; toddling through the radar market and learning on the fly. But we have huge potential, and we’re special.

Alright, every parent thinks their baby is special. But Robin really was, because of its vision. It saw a future of aviation safety, based on true innovation.

And we didn’t need a crystal ball. We knew that radar would spell the fall of binoculars as the main tool to monitor objects in airspace.

In 2012, we achieved our first big European tender from Schiphol airport. They saw what we saw, and became one of the first airports to install specialised avian radar to monitor and prevent the threat of bird strikes. 

2. The Party Started 

You’re probably wondering why on earth we would choose to insert a video of a guy dancing in a field at this point. It’s a fair question.

Bear with us, we’re going for metaphorical impact here.

This is how our CEO, Siete Hamminga, felt in December of 2012. He could hear the music loud and clear, he was moving to the rhythm . But he was the only one. 

Now, we’re not saying there’s anything wrong with dancing alone. It’s 2020 - basically the year of dancing alone. But, and we can all agree, it’s not as good.

Fun fact, the date was actually 12/12/12 when Robin's first investors changed all of that. And a lesser-known fact, the first followers are most often the true heroes in business. They transform a pretty awkward jive into a true movement.

INKEF Capital, The Mainport Innovation Fund KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Royal Schiphol Group, Technische Universiteit Delft and Rijksdienst voor Ondernemend Nederland (RVO), thank you for jumping into the fun!

later that same year, we presented our growth plan. It received millions in funding from The Mainport Innovation Fund and Infek Capital.

This was big. Dutch Economic Affairs were willing to grant us a more than 1 million euro loan to finance the secret development of our innovative new radar, now known as MAX.

3. Number One

If we had a metaphorical fridge, where we hung all our achievements and gold stars, this one would be placed with pride. Maybe we're going a little overboard on the metaphors, huh? We'll tone it down.

In 2014, the Dutch government challenged the industry to provide solutions for the detection and intervention of small drones. 38 companies responded, including Robin.

We ranked number one. It was this moment, and for the first time, the more established companies in the industry began to take notice of Robin Radar Systems.

4. Watching Over World Leaders

In 2014 we were becoming a truly recognised authority in the world of radar innovation. Off the back of this growing reputation, we were being brought in to boost the security of high-caliber events.

One such event was the 2014 Nuclear Security Summit, held in The Hague. Robin was there, watching the skies over 58 world leaders as they gathered to discuss how to stop terrorists from gaining access to nuclear material.  

It marked a significant shift for us, as we stepped into the realm of political security on a global scale. It would become one of many occasions where our radar protected world leaders and political figures from aerial threats.

But, we’ll get into that a little later.

5. A Radar Fit for Royalty 

We always thought that we were destined for the finer things in life. And in March of 2015, we were finally able to live out our royal fantasies. 

Robin Radar Systems participated in an official state visit of HRH King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of The Netherlands. 

We were invited to Denmark to participate in a Trade Mission about Offshore Wind. Lucky for us, it was combined with an official state visit from the King and Queen. There, we proudly presented Robin's jewel in the crown: our avian radars. 

As a pilot himself, HRH King-Willem Alexander was interested in bird strike prevention, and asked if we ever thought about integrating deterrence measures.

Not a bad idea. Leave it with us.  

6. G7 Summit 

Just five years old, 2015 was a big year for us. It was a tipping point, and the scale of events and projects our radar was becoming involved with was climbing rapidly.

The same year, Robin’s ELVIRA was transported to Bavaria, Germany, to provide security for the 41st G7 Summit. The radar was supplied through our German reseller and partner, ESG. It was positioned to monitor airspace and detect any potential threats. 

Some pretty important world topics have been discussed beneath the careful gaze of our radar. Such as the global economy, protection of the marine environment and the empowerment of self-employed women.

We think that's pretty awesome. 

7. Sinotech and Robin Unite! 

In 2016, Robin Radar Systems and Chinese company Sinotech joined forces to become Sinorobin!

We expanded our global reach significantly when we partnered with Chinese Engineering Consultancy, Sinotech. Together, we launched a joint venture in Beijing. Both companies knew that the Asian domestic market had a lot of potential, and together, we captured it.

Soon, our radars were making a difference in Asia. The Jiangsu Province has coastal wetlands which are of global importance for the gathering of migratory birds using the East Asian-Australasian flyway. Some of the world's most endangered species depend on the coastline as a stopover to forage and rest.

With new wind farm development in the area, a unique technology solution was needed to predict its potential impact and monitor the situation during operations. We supplied, successively, two 3D Fixed Bird Radar Systems to do just that.

8. Securing Skies at NATO Summit 

If you'd told us, ten years ago, that our technology would be applied to protect Donald Trump from aerial threats, we'd have said: "You had a pretty vivid imagination. And there's nothing wrong with that."

Well, in July 11th & 12th 2018, that actually happened. 

We were called upon again to help protect world leaders as they gathered in Brussels for a NATO Summit. 

Check out this picture, it's one of our favourites.

As impressive as those political leaders look, we can't help but admire the VIP positioned on the top right pillar of the building. (Psst, it's ELVIRA). 

9. Great Place to Work

At Robin, we think it's important to make hard work fun. We rely on our bright, independent professionals that bring passion and enthusiasm to their work each day. We trust them completely; we couldn't have hit all of these milestones without them. 

So in 2019 we said: let's make this thing official, and become a certified Great Place to Work. 

We were able to show that our values and culture align with those that make a company a great place to work. We were pretty hyped! 

So this year (2020), we wanted to go for it again. We were delighted to be awarded Great Place to Work for the second time in a row. 

10. 3...2... Lift Off

It would have been a downright travesty not to use this as our 10th and final milestone. 

We wave goodbye to 2020, a decade of Robin, with the launch of our newest breakthrough drone radar; IRIS. 

Years of hard work, brainpower and a waterfall of coffee went into IRIS, but her spectacular launch made it all worth it. 

We couldn't have hoped better engagement with and attendance to our campaign and live online launch event. You guys made it really special. 

Maybe it's just the end-of-year nostalgia getting to us, but we'll end this mammoth blog with these simple but profound words: stay awesome. 

Thanks for riding the crazy wave. Here's to another decade of innovation!

Robin's Radar Heroes: BUWA Saves the Songbirds

Robin's Radar Heroes: International mission support

Robin's Radar Heroes: raising the bar in aviation safety

Robin's Radar Heroes: making world events safe

Robin's Radar Heroes: putting radar on the ocean