A Decade of Good VIBES: From a Leap Day Dream to an International Standard in NVH

It’s not every day a company gets to celebrate its 10th anniversary, but then again, VIBES.technology has never been one for the “everyday” approach.

Founded on February 29th, 2016 – yes, Leap Day – we technically only get a “real” birthday every four years. But while our official calendar age might be young, the journey from a Delft-based startup to a global leader in Hybrid Modular Engineering has been a decade in the making. 

VIBES was born from the combined vision of Maarten van der Seijs, Dennis de Klerk, Maarten van der Kooij, Eric Pasma, and Daniël van den Bosch. Coming largely from academic backgrounds at Delft University of Technology, the founders shared a singular trust in the power of technology to help solve challenges in the complex world of Noise, Vibration, and Harshness (NVH) engineering. 

The early years were defined by “evangelizing” new concepts to large OEMs. We weren’t just selling software; we were explaining the fundamental value of things like Virtual Points and Blocked Forces. That hard work paid off quickly with growth capital from UNIIQ in 2017, allowing us to develop our first stand-alone product DIRAC. 

Reflecting on those early days, Maarten (v.d. Seijs) notes: 

“We started in 2016 with excitement and trust in the technology itself, which makes sense considering we originally came from mostly academic careers. I dare say that I thought I could foresee what the technology would hold for us in the years to come. However, I didn’t see X-DoF coming! Inventions such as those are due to the unique situation at VIBES, where talented individuals from across the globe are truly working together. Shining light at technological challenges from many angles, more so than often possible in academic context. It makes me proud to see that what we have achieved so far as a team is much bigger than I could have imagined.” 

In 2018, we officially launched DIRAC, which was a big gamechanger for VIBES. Dennis stands behind this gamechanger statement:  

“Our first big campaign with DIRAC was the biggest development for VIBES, doing Virtual Point Transformations on the fly using a 3D environment with virtual instrumentation. We were the first ever at that back in 2017.” 

We soon realized our ambitions were bigger than the Netherlands, leading us to open our Munich office in 2019 to be closer to the heart of the European automotive industry, and to entering markets in the USA and Asia in the years after.

As we grew, so did our reputation. Even a global pandemic couldn’t slow us down; 2020 saw the launch of SOURCE (our “COVID baby”) and a collaboration with Lightyear on their solar powered long-distance car. Additionally, VIBES collaborated with TU Munich and BMW on another innovative project to develop software to accurately predict the sound & vibration behavior of new (electric) vehicles, using the technology of Dynamic Substructuring. This project was voted for by Eurostars as the most innovative in The Netherlands and one of the best in Europe. By our 5th anniversary in 2021, the “VIBES family” was no longer just a small group of founders but its own movement.

From the beginning, VIBES has been a multicultural melting pot. This international talent is our secret sauce, bringing different perspectives to the toughest technological challenges. While we expanded globally, we stayed true to our roots, moving into a beautiful new office in the Delft city center in 2024. 

Annika, our HR Manager, remembers the move fondly: 

“It was quite a search when we were looking for a new office in and around Delft. When we eventually found the perfect place in Delft, everything came together and it fell like the perfect step in many ways. For VIBES, it meant we could stay in the city that is in our DNA and that it did not affect the commute of our colleagues in a negative way.” 

Our team’s diversity is a great point of pride, and we often share stories about the unique experience of joining our global family. If you’re curious about what it’s like to join the team from across the globe, you can read more about moving abroad for a new job here.

2022 was a year of massive transition. Dennis de Klerk joined the management team as Maarten van der Kooij moved on to new adventures, and we solidified our partnership with Müller-BBM. On Valentine’s Day, we launched COUPLE following a major success with Hyundai, initiating our move from test-based modelling to hybrid (modular) modelling.  

This wasn’t just a product launch; it was the fulfillment of Eric’s original vision: 

“From the start, the vision has been to develop hybrid modular modelling. That is how it all began. COUPLE has been one of the main goals: to bring a different approach to modular working by integrating test-based models to obtain more accurate predictions AND then perform iterations/simulations with those models that are more accurate.” 

As we grew, so did our technical authority. In 2023, we hosted our second VIBES.experience in Delft and developed the patented X-DoF algorithm. Our Research Engineer Jelle recalls: 

“X-DoF was the first experience anyone at VIBES had with patenting our technology, so it was very interesting to go through that process together. We learned a lot from it, and it was also a milestone for the company, because it demonstrated that we are not only making nice software but are actually inventing new ways to solve problems in NVH.” 

The last few years have been a whirlwind of international expansion. We’ve hosted our biggest VIBES.experience yet in Munich and an inspiring seminar for about 100 NVH engineers in Japan in 2025. We’ve also made a significant push into the Indian market, partnered with Dr. Pawan Pingle, and have sent our team members across the world to build relationships. 

Ron, our Strategic Business Developer, reflects on his time in South Korea: 

“There are many aspects about culture that you notice in a few days or weeks of a usual business trip that get more understandable when spending more time with the people and their culture. Social interactions seem very formal and polite compared with our conversations in Europe, which gave me a feeling of being rather inefficient during my first stays. But with more time spent in the rich Korean culture, which has been influenced by Confucian ideas over many centuries, I really like the concept of ‘Nunchi’; listening with high respect for other people. It allows you to get a fuller picture of their opinion. In Europe, we are often quick to interrupt and thus risk missing the full perspective of others. It was great to experience so many aspects like this in daily interactions, and having the possibilities to exchange on them also with the people whom I was able to build up a closer relationship as these impressions always have two sides but you are only able to see one yourself.” 

Most recently, at the SIAT event in India, over 400 people visited our booth. Ed, our Head of Sales who led the charge there, notes:

“Bringing VIBES to India is a very rewarding experience. India, in population the largest county in the world, has enormous industrial potential. The advantage for them is that they don’t have a big burden of legacy systems. This means that they are seriously considering changing the way they work, by applying an innovative NVH simulation approach such as VIBES’ Hybrid Modular Engineering, to help them gaining an advantage in developing products for the local and global market. It was very rewarding to have many people visit our booth at the SIAT and their interest in our unique propositions such as Hybrid Modular Modelling, combining test-based and CAE models, and X-DoF. It’s exciting to see how our ‘VIBES way of working’ resonates with engineers halfway across the world.” 

Today the technology we once had to “evangelize” has become the industry standard. Our most recent launch of SOURCE 2.0 continues with this legacy, refining how engineers characterize high-quality blocked forces, leveraging many other key technologies such as Virtual Points, Complex Power analysis and auralization. What was once pioneering is now proven. 

Maarten perfectly describes the steps leading to proof of VIBES’ capabilities:  

“It is the adoption and trust in the technology, such that it is now used in actual product development. We have spent quite a few years pioneering the technology itself, going around large OEMs to advocate for its value and accuracy. We were explaining what a Virtual Point is and what it’s doing for your daily work in NVH engineering. The same holds for blocked forces. Now those are undeniable concepts which are found and relied upon in industrial processes. Heck, even competitor software has embraced this, and are showing efforts to mimic certain original technology pioneered by VIBES!”  

In 2023, we made the following promise: We envision that engineers can set up a modular NVH process, in which models based on tests can be combined with those from CAE simulations. We set a bold goal that we aim to achieve in 2026: fully available Hybrid Modular Engineering. As we celebrate this 10th anniversary, we are proud to say: Promise kept? Check! 

But we are not stopping there! Software Team Lead Kaloyan sums it up perfectly: 

“VIBES will be the go-to platform for the full NVH engineering workflow. Not just individual analysis steps, but a seamlessly integrated environment where measured data, simulation, and AI-assisted insights work together. As electric vehicles continue to dominate, the demand for what we do will only grow. I think VIBES will be a much larger company, but I hope we’ll still feel like engineers building for engineers.” 

To our team of dreamers and innovators, our partners, and our customers: thank you for an incredible ten years. We’ve come a long way since that Leap Day in 2016, and we’re just getting started. 

Here’s to the next decade of good VIBES!