Vélfag was founded in 1995 by husband and wife Bjarmi Sigurgarðarsson and Ólöf Ýr Lárusdóttir in the small town of Ólafsfjörður in North Iceland. After years of working on and around fishing vessels, they were convinced that new materials coupled with the latest technology would further enable fish processors to increase the utilization, yield and quality of each catch. From producing better solutions for Baader machines, to building the worlds first stainless steel filleting machine, to selling 97 machines to customers based in 11 different countries, Vélfag has come a long way from the early days of spare part construction in the family garage. It just shows that a great idea along with a passion for growth and a little elbow grease can positively change the lives of many! Below is a collection of pictures, news articles and published interviews about Vélfags achievements over the past 25 years.
News articals:
Vélfag has been working with Murman Seafood in Russia setting up a filleting line within their brand-new processing plant. Everything is coming together after over a year of hard work from all parties involved. Vélfag is very proud of the work we have done in Russia, and grateful for the opportunity to work with Murman Seafood. Vélfag has been working along-side Valka ehf. throughout construction to create a one-of-a-kind processing line for Murman Seafood. Other parties that have been working for and with Vélfag on this project include: N.Hansen, Slippurinn, Ingvi Óskarsson, Schmidt Innovation, Arion Banki, Raftákn, B&R and numerous other companies and individuals that made it all possible. A news story was broadcast on national Russian television yesterday about the project. The Governor of Andrey Chibis visited the site and was interviewed along with other prestigious Russian heads of departments and technicians working on making the processing plant a reality. Investments in the real sector of the economy
(translation of the Russian news broadcasting). A new fish processing plant has been built in the region. Production workshops are located in Kola. Today the governor of the region Andrey Chibis went for a visit. Adjustment of equipment that has been installed is at the final stage. The final consultations for the companies who have been working on this project loom ever closer. Leading companies from five countries took part in the creation of the production line. The Icelandic companies Vélfag ehf. and Valka ehf. are the companies that provided the majority of the processing line within the factory. Icelanders contact states; they know a lot about fish. Consultant Dushan Markovich (from Valka): “That's all we have: fish and tourism. Iceland is the best. Therefore, we make the best equipment. For our best partners from Russia and Murmansk.” Correspondent Vladimir Kostrov: "This fish processing line evokes associations with some kind of science fiction film. By the way, does the seat resemble a chair in Vesti broadcasting studio. Oops. What will happen at this particular workplace?" Production manager Konstantin Mironenko: "Here people will modify the fillet. Remove the bones that remain after cutting. And the monitors display the work done at each table." Jobs are the main social component of the new investment project, especially for the residents of Kola and Murmansk The head of the administration of the Kola region. Alexander Likholat: “About three hundred places at the end, when we start the entire cycle. And the average wage of a worker is about 60 thousand rubles. This is the level for us. Somewhere next to NOVATEK.” The company that owns the plant has its own fleet at its disposal, so there will be no problems with raw materials. They intend to supply ready-made frozen and chilled fish products both abroad and to the wholesale markets of Russia. Not to mention the local counters. The producer is a regular participant in the Our Fish project. Director General of the fishing company Vladimir Khizhnyakov: “A company store will be made. Separately, especially for this product. And not only for this one. We still have a factory in Rosta, we still have something and everything we produce - come, buy. Not at store prices, no trade margins." The cost of the investment project is more than two billion rubles. It was implemented as part of the state program to support the modernization of the fish processing industry. Governor of the Murmansk region Andrei Chibis: "It is fundamentally important that this processing plant - in the territory of the Murmansk region, which provides jobs, investments and taxes. It is clear that in order to start this production there are a number of infrastructure problems. Now we will quickly help our colleagues solve them " In the near future, the first batch of raw materials will be delivered to the fish processing complex in Kola to start production in test mode. It is expected that the plant will give the first batch of marketable products in February. FAO published the following results in their 2018 report of the state of world fisheries and aquaculture. http://www.fao.org/3/i9540en/i9540en.pdf It is clear to see that most of the world relies on fish as an important protein source. The majority of European and American countries consume over 20kg of fish per year, and the majority of countries with the most fish consumption per capita is in northern Europe and SE Asia. It also bears to mention that fish is the primary protein source for 1 in 5 persons worldwide. These numbers will only increase, as it is predicted by 2050, the worlds population will have grown to 2 billion people. The worlds food supply will therefore need to double to feed that masses. Along with population growth, economic growth is also predicted within developing countries, subsequently increasing worldwide protein consumption. Today´s supply chain from catch to plate is wasting crucial resources. These wasteful practices cannot be continued if the predicted growth rate becomes a reality. The challenges we need to tackle within the seafood sector in the not-so-distant future are therefore the following:
The solutions to these challenges could surprisingly be a simple one; Technology. As an innovative company, Vélfags processing solutions can be part of that solution, by utilizing the latest technology to maximize the value of every fish caught:
Vélfag is growing fast, and has ambitious plans for the future Vélfag offers a wide product range of heading, filleting and skinning machines for whitefish, both for on sea and land-based facilities. Vélfags TakeControl operating system offers an unprecedented level of control throughout nearly every element of the processing line, while ensuring even more user friendliness for the customers. Vélfags business model fits into the solutions for the future trends that were listed earlier by insuring:
But what is in store for the future, if we make the choice and lean into modern technology to improve utilization?
The right choices today, ensure a sustainable tomorrow Plastic pollution is one of our planets most pressing environmental issues.
The Vélfag team is constantly striving to develop our machinery to be the best on the market, which also includes making environmentally sound choices. Vélfag is proud to say that our machines are primarily comprised of recycled POM plastics and stainless steel, which are both environmentally conscious building materials. The right choices today, ensures a brighter tomorrow! Happy New Year! Thank you to everyone who worked with us in 2019.
2019 was one of Vélfags biggest years yet. We sold a record number of machines, moved into an amazing new office space, and 4 new staff members joined our team. We would also like to congratulate Rammi Ehf. for their successful fishing year with freezing trawler Sólberg ÓF 1, that landed the most amount of demersal catch in 2019. We are very proud to see our machines working so well on board. Looking forward to what 2020 has in store! Grein birt í Sóknarfærum september 2019
„Vélfag er á hraðri leið þessa dagana og markvisst að stíga úr því nýsköpunar- og þróunarferli sem fyrirtækið hefur verið í síðustu ár yfir í aukna áherslu á fjöldaframleiðslu fiskvinnsluvéla ásamt heildarlausna með búnaði fyrir hvítfiskvinnslu. Ísland er okkar heimamarkaður og meðfram áherslu á að tryggja áframhaldandi þjónustu og sölu hér á landi, horfum við til mikilla tækifæra í aukinni sölu á erlendum mörkuðum, enda hefur viðskiptavinum okkar erlendis fjölgað mikið. Náið samstarf sjávarútvegs- og tæknifyrirtækja hefur gert íslenskan sjávarútveg að þeim fremsta í heiminum. Það er því engin tilviljun að horft sé til Íslands þegar leitað er að besta búnaðinum til að byggja upp tæknivæddar fiskvinnslur, eins og við erum t.d. að sjá í Rússlandi.“ segir Björg Finnbogadóttir, verkefnastýra hjá fyrirtækinu Vélfagi ehf. Framleiðsla og samsetning vélbúnaðarins er í Ólafsfirði en skrifstofur og þróunarsetur á Akureyri þar sem fyrirtækið hefur nýverið fjárfest í stærra húsnæði til að mæta fyrirætlunum um vöxt í starfseminni og fjölgun spennandi starfa í tæknigeiranum fyrir jafnt iðn- og háskólamenntað fólk. Þjónusta til viðskiptavina er jafnframt veitt frá báðum starfstöðvum Vélfags. Áhersla á framleiðslu og sölu Auk flökunarvéla framleiðir Vélfag hausara og roðdráttarvélar fyrir bolfisk og fást þessar vélar bæði sem tölvustýrðar og mekanískar. Þá hefur fyrirtækið þróað og afhent á þessu ári hina nýju M521 hausara/klumbuskurðarvél. Vélin er þróuð til að taka haus og/eða klumbu af bolfiski fyrir flökun. Vélin hentar bæði til að skera klumbuna af H&G bolfiski (hausaður og slægður) en einnig til að hausa fiskinn um leið og klumban er skorinn af. Með M521 vélinni fá viðskiptavinir val um einfalda og öfluga vél á mjög góðu verði, sem tekur lítið pláss og auðvelt er að koma fyrir í bæði stórum og smáum vinnslum. Á síðustu árum hefur fyrirtækið þróað tölvustýrt gæða- og stjórnkerfi fyrir sínar vélar, svokallað TakeControl kerfi, sem skilað hefur enn frekari framförum í nýtingu á fiski. Stjórnun vélanna fer fram á snertiskjá og er hægt að kalla fram og vinna með upplýsingar og stillingar með einföldum hætti. Leiðbeiningarbæklingar, partalistar og yfirsýn yfir ástand vélbúnaðarins hverju sinni er hægt að kalla upp á skjáinn, sem aftur tryggir fyrirbyggjandi viðhald, uppitíma og nýtingu. Með TakeControl er hægt að fjartengjast vélunum hvar sem er í heiminum og veita þjónustu við þær yfir netið. „Hér eru fáir starfsmenn sem áorkað hafa miklu í nýsköpun, vöruþróun og öflugri þjónustu á undanförnum árum en nú er komið að þeim tímapunkti að við erum að fjölga spennandi, fjölbreyttum störfum í fyrirtækinu og leggjum enn meiri áherslu á framleiðslu og sölu á okkar búnaði jafnt í heildarlausnum sem stökum vélum, eftir því sem við á. Aðal áherslan verður sem fyrr í hjarta framleiðslunnar eins og við köllum það, og tæknilegri þróun þeirra véla. Það eru mörg spennandi þróunarverkefni framundan,“ segir Björg. Hvetjandi þróun í sjávarútvegi á alþjóðavísu Á þessu ári afhenti Vélfag sína fyrstu stóru heildarlausn í Rússlandi, sem hluti af stórum samning sem íslenska fyrirtækið Valka ehf. var með fyrir búnað í nýja fiskvinnslu. Vélfag ehf. sá um vélbúnað fyrir innmötun, hausun, flökun og roðdrátt. Take Control stýrikerfið var aðlagað fyrir þessa heildarlausn og sérhannað palla- og færibandakerfi til að tryggja bæði aðgengi að vélum og flutning fisksins innan línnunar með sem minnstu hnjaski. Björg segir tækifæri bæði felast í samstarfi við önnur íslensk fyrirtæki á erlendum mörkuðum líkt og í þessu verkefni í Rússlandi en einnig í beinni markaðssetningu. „Vélfag hefur náð góðum árangri í markaðssetningu hér heima á síðustu árum, fyrst á sjó og svo í landvinnslum en vaxtartækifæri okkar felast í útflutningi. Eins og staðan er núna finnum við fyrir mikilli eftirspurn frá Austur-Evrópu og ekki síst Rússlandi, og hafa þeir metnað og fjármagn til að byggja tæknivæddar landvinnslur á borð við nýjustu vinnslurnar hér á landi. Það eru gífurlega spennandi tímar framundan á hinum alþjóðlega sjávarútvegsmarkaði. Við erum að sjá aukna áherslu á bæði nýtingu og gæðum á því dýrmæta hráefni sem fiskur er, og á sama tíma er mikil vöntun á sérhæfðu starfsfólki hvert sem litið er og þess vegna aukin þörf á sjálfvirkni. Ennfremur er komið að endurnýjun hjá mörgum fyrirtækjum sem eru nú þegar með tæknivæddar vinnslur, þannig að ég held að heildaraðstæður fyrir fyrirtæki eins og Vélfag gætu hreinlega ekki verið meira spennandi“ segir Björg. Vélfag verður þátttakandi á sýningunni Sjávarútvegur 2019 í Laugardalshöll og mun þar kynna sína framleiðslu. velfag.com Kirkella H7 sailing through Tower Bridge. Source: UK Fisheries Another happy Velfag customer,the Hull-based Kirkella fishing trawler brought London to a standstill as she sailed down the Thames for her naming ceremony. The 81m vesselstopped traffic as she sailed under Tower Bridge in preparation for hernaming ceremonyon Wednesday, where HRH Princess Anne broke the champagne bottle on the ship’s bold yellow-and-blue stern to officially christen the UK’s largest fishing trawler. HRH Princess Anne christening the Kirkella. Source: UK Fisheries The new Kirkella, which cost more than £40m to build, is the last remnant of Hull's fishing past. Thousands of trawlers in the 1950s heyday used to set-off from Hull for the distant waters around Iceland, Norway and Greenland to hunt for haddock and cod – the fish favoured by those frequenting fish and chip shops in Britain – but the Kirkella is now the only UK boat to patrol those waters. To ensure the best yield, quality and profit for its catch, UK Fisheries chose exclusively Velfag machinery for the heading, filleting and skinning of the fish, based on their experience and performance, from the old Kirkella, fitted with among other Brands ,1 Velfag filleting machine. HRH Princess Anne learning about the Vélfag machinery. Source: UK Fisheries For Velfag information and service in the UK and Ireland , please contact our Agent/Representative , Lorrimar Weighing in Hull.
Lorrimar Weighing Ltd Hatfield Hi Tech Park Goulton Street HU3 4DD Hull United Kingdom Tel +44(0)1482 228173 solutions@lorrimar.co.uk All pictures from UK Fisheries Velfag's founders and CEOs were invited to the naming ceremony of Berlin NC105 in Cuxhaven. Berlin NC 105 is now sailing from Kleven shipyard north to Brattvag to test the winches. The vessel will be back to the shipyard after the weekend for the final stages before first sea trials. Berlin is a high tech fish processing vessel packed with the latest technology from the fishing industry, including the full line of fish processing machines from Velfag ehf.
Deutsche Fishfang Union´s Vessel Cuxhaven is now in for service and minor changes at SlippurinnDNG in Akureyri Iceland.
Velfag´s team is overseeing the on-board Velfag processing line in this visit to Akureyri. Cuxhaven has on board 2xM505 computer controlled heading machines giving better yield 1xM700 mechanical filleting machine widely used in the north Atlantic fleet and 1xM800 skinning machine known for it´s reliability ,good tails and superb yield. In it´s last trip Cuxhaven´s catch was mainly redfish and halibut but will be aiming for white fish fillets in it´s next trip. Velfag´s team wishes captain and crew all the best. |
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