Commissioning Engineer

Schoonhoven, the Netherlands 40 hours Full-time €4357 - €6000 / month

As a Machine Fitter / Commissioning Engineer, you play a hands-on role in bringing custom-built machines and production lines to life — first in the workshop, and later on location at customers around the world. You start out by getting fully acquainted with the machines in the workshop, and once you've built up the right experience, you'll travel abroad together with an experienced colleague to install, commission, and hand over machines to clients. Over time, you grow into a position where you independently manage the installation and completion of projects on-site.

Description

Between installation assignments, you remain active as a service technician and workshop mechanic, giving you a healthy variety of work and regular contact with your colleagues. As the face of the company on location, you are also one of its ambassadors to clients across the globe.

Requirements

You enjoy solving practical problems on the spot and take pride and ownership in every machine you help bring to life for a client. You're just as comfortable picking up a wrench in the workshop as you are representing the company professionally at a customer site on the other side of the world. You're flexible, hands-on, and ready to build up experience step by step before taking on projects independently.

Other requirements:

Red Seal Millwright, Fitter, or Electrician (or a similar technical qualification), or equivalent hands-on experience
Experience with mechanical assembly; affinity with electrical and control systems is a strong advantage
Willingness to travel internationally for several weeks at a time, a few times per year
Fluent in Afrikaans and English
Willing to relocate to the Netherlands and learn Dutch
Valid driver's license

What we offer

An opportunity to work and live in the Netherlands with a fantastic quality of life (with the option to obtain a Dutch passport)
A competitive salary that fits your skills and experience
Employ IR will cover work-related costs and the cost of relocating to the Netherlands
Employ IR will assist you every step of the way during your relocation process
8% of your gross yearly income as vacation money
A company car that can be used privately
25 vacation days
Good pension scheme

About the client

Our client is a specialized manufacturer of machinery and complete production lines for the reinforcement steel (rebar) processing industry, part of the broader manufacturing and machinery-building sector. The company designs, produces, and installs its equipment entirely in-house, covering everything from steel fabrication and CNC machining to control-systems engineering and on-site commissioning. It operates internationally, with installation and service teams active across Europe and further afield, including Australia and Singapore. The organisation is a small, established manufacturer (roughly 15–25 employees) with decades of operating history and a strong technical, engineering-driven culture. It positions itself as a leading niche player in the global automation of rebar-processing equipment.

More information

As a Machine Fitter / Commissioning Engineer, you help build, test, and commission machines that are manufactured almost entirely in-house — from design and welding through to machining, control cabinet assembly, and programming. Once a machine is ready, you help make sure it is properly tested and prepared for transport, so that on-site installation times can be kept as short as possible, typically no more than two to three consecutive weeks.

On location, you take care of everything from mechanical assembly to fine-tuning the machine's systems, and you train the client's own operators and maintenance staff in how to work with it safely and effectively. Assignments take you across Europe — particularly Belgium, Switzerland, Germany, the United Kingdom, and Scandinavia — as well as further afield to destinations such as the United States, Singapore, and Australia, with roughly three to four international trips planned per year.

Installing and completing new machines and production lines on location at customers worldwide
Independently maintaining machines and diagnosing and resolving technical faults
Training clients' operators and maintenance staff on the use of their new machine
Supporting service and assembly work in the workshop between installation projects

Published on 7 September 2026

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Frequently Asked Questions

Questions about working in the Netherlands, your relocation or the process at Employ IR? Below are the questions we receive most often. Can't find your question? Please feel free to contact us.

View all frequently asked questions

How does health insurance work in the Netherlands?

In the Netherlands, you are required to have health insurance, which covers essential services such as doctor visits, hospital care and medications. Health insurance costs about €150 per month. Employ IR offers independent experts to help you choose a health insurer, and the government ensures that all insurers offer the same basic coverage. There is an annual deductible, but most basic care is covered. For a referral to a specialist, you first visit your family doctor. Additional insurance is also available for extras such as dentistry or physical therapy. The system is accessible and guarantees quality care for everyone.

How long does the relocation process take?

After you sign your contract with Employ IR, the process usually takes about 6-8 weeks before you are in the Netherlands. However, this depends on factors beyond our control, such as the workload at the IND (Immigration and Naturalization Service).

What documents do I need to move to the Netherlands?

Everyone participating in the relocation process needs a passport and an unabridged birth certificate (with apostille). If you are married and want to bring your partner to the Netherlands, you also need a marriage certificate (with apostille). If you are in a long-term relationship but not married, you and your partner must both provide a declaration of marital impediment (with apostille). The unabridged birth certificates, marriage certificates and declarations of impediment to marriage can be obtained from the Department of Home Affairs. Apostilles can be obtained from DIRCO.

Can I use my South African driver's license in the Netherlands?

Yes, if you have applied for the 30% ruling, you can use your South African driver's license for the first six months. It is important that you convert your South African driver's license to a Dutch driver's license at your municipality after your 30% ruling has been approved. If you do not convert your driving license within the first six months, it will become invalid and you will have to take a driving test again in the Netherlands.

How much does it cost to move to the Netherlands through Employ IR?

In short, very little.

More comprehensive: Employ IR covers all costs related to your move, except for expenses incurred in South Africa, such as for your personal documents and other personal items.

What Employ IR arranges

We arrange your entire move to the Netherlands and take care of the process for you. With our years of experience in visa procedures, we handle your visa application quickly and carefully, including applications for your partner and children. We arrange your housing, transport with a company car, Dutch lessons and the application for the 30% ruling. We also take care of the details from start to finish: from personally welcoming you at the airport to helping you register with a GP and sports clubs, apply for child benefit and much more. Your relocation manager guides you personally throughout the process.

What you arrange and pay for yourself

Employ IR pays the estate agent and covers the costs of finding your home; you pay the monthly rent yourself. You also arrange your own personal documents in South Africa and private insurance, including health insurance, which is compulsory in the Netherlands.