VMI Around the World in 80 Years

Between the beginning of April and the end of November 2025, VMI celebrated an extraordinary milestone, one that few companies achieve: 80 years of successful innovation, service, and growth worldwide. From a small workshop in the peace and quiet of rural Gelderland in the Netherlands, VMI has grown into a global player, with operations on almost every continent and a key role in driving growth and quality improvement in the tire, rubber, and other industries globally.

Around the World in 80 Years
This was the theme of the year, with celebrations in all major locations, attended by the management of each country, members of the Board of Directors, and the company’s employees. The celebrations began on April 1, when all parts of the company met online, before moving on to large-scale events and parties in Yantai (China), Stow (USA), Itatiaia (Brazil), Leszno (Poland), and Vadodara (India), with a special highlight of the campaign being an epic Family Day in Epe, involving more than 3,000 people.

A Tribute to Our People
This event, which brought together not only the people who work for VMI but also their families, perfectly illustrates what made the entire campaign so special. It was, without a doubt, about global presence, about celebrating how far VMI has come in scale and scope, and yet it was, above all, a tribute to our people. To all those special human beings who helped build the company over eight decades, to the families who supported them every step of the way, and to the rich and inclusive culture that makes VMI unique.

Harm Voortman, CEO of VMI, comments:
“VMI is a global business, but we are also truly local in every country in which we operate. We pride ourselves on being professional, rigorous, and always working to the highest standards, but also on being welcoming, open, and friendly to everyone.”

Innovation is now and always the key
Around the World in 80 Years celebrates, above all, decade after decade of continuous and tireless innovation. VMI has been built on a solid foundation of exceptional ideas, great knowledge, original thinking, an unwavering commitment to R&D, and a constant flow of excellent products, designed to improve and support the markets and customers with whom we work.

This was also the year in which VMI received the EcoVadis Gold award, celebrating another special achievement: recognition as one of the most sustainable and environmentally responsible manufacturers of all.

As Mike Norman, Commercial Director, comments:
“This great milestone has been reached and VMI is already looking ahead, towards new challenges, new achievements, and more celebrations, with innovation as the key to success in the future, just as it has been for the past 80 years.”