Press release: Zuhal Demir visits Genk company Spronken Orthopedie

03 october 2024 General

Press release

Zuhal Demir visits Genk company Spronken Orthopedie

Genk, 3/10/2024- Flemish Minister of Justice and Enforcement, Environment, Energy and Tourism and candidate mayor of Genk, Zuhal Demir, will visit Spronken Orthopedie on Thursday 3/10. Spronken Orthopedie was founded by Eugène Spronken in Genk in September 1960. Since then, the company has become a fixture in the world of orthopaedics at home and abroad. This family business, which has specialised in orthopaedic solutions for decades, originally began by supporting miners with injuries. The visit not only underlines Spronken's important role as an innovative player in the healthcare sector, but also highlights the shared background of Demir and Spronken, both deeply rooted in Genk's mining past.

Heritage and innovation in Genk

Zuhal Demir, daughter of a former migrant worker who worked in the Genk mines, knows first-hand the resilience of the city and its people. Just as her family was part of the construction of Genk, Spronken Orthopaedics was born in the 1960s from the need to provide help to workers who suffered serious injuries in the mines. What began as a small company focused on rehabilitation and recovery has grown into an internationally renowned company that develops and manufactures innovative orthopaedic devices.

During her visit, Demir will see the company in action and learn more about their eco-friendly production processes and their pioneering work in prostheses and orthoses. She will visit Uplab, the innovative motion analysis lab. She will interact with some prosthetic patients and be able to experience in real life how it feels to walk with a prosthesis. This visit fits closely with her ambition to make Genk a city that is progressive both economically and socially, while respecting its rich past.

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‘For Spronken Orthopedie, it is an honour to welcome Minister Demir also because of her personal connection with our city and its roots,’ says Caius Spronken , director of Spronken Orthopedie. ‘Our company originated from the mining community and it is great to see how Genk and our company continue to grow together, spearheading innovation and local employment.’

Spronken Orthopedie is the first company to visit Minister Demir as part of her new responsibilities. For this special occasion, we also invited the head of the orthopaedics course at Thomas More in Geel, together with some students. As Thomas More is the only college offering this specific orthopaedic training, we would like to highlight this bottleneck profession.

About Spronken Orthopedie
Founded in 1960, and part of the Spronken Group, Spronken Orthopedie is a leading family-owned company that traces its roots to supporting miners with orthopaedic problems. Today, the company develops and produces innovative orthopaedic devices that are used worldwide. Sustainability and technological advances are at the heart of their business operations. Spronken Orthopedie is a pioneer in making 3D printed braces tailored to the patient and is a leader in modern paediatric rehabilitation orthopaedics and prosthetics.

For more information or press contact: 

www.spronken.com
Www.spronkengroup.com

Nadia Kaczanowski
Nadia.kaczanowski@spronken.com
+32 (0)89 500 500.