ASML Employee Rick Lenssen spent the past 2.5 years working on a scale model of the chip machine builder with 25,000 blocks. That cost him blood, sweat, and tears. He was happy to finish it. “I immediately sent pictures to my family and friends,” he said.
The idea
It all started in 2018 for 35-year-old Rick. He was at a Lego fair in Utrecht with his wife and children. he wished to foster a love for the toy in his offspring, but things turned out a little differently. Yes, his children fell under the spell of the Danish invention, but the ASML employee’s hands also began to itch.
And once you catch the “Lego virus,” the options are endless. For example, there is Lego from worlds as diverse as Harry Potter, Star Wars, and Batman. Yet Rick’s choice fell a little closer to home. He chose to recreate the ASML Campus in Veldhoven, where he has now been walking around for nine years. “I’ve always had a thing for architecture. Moreover, the gigantic and impressive buildings here fascinated me ,” he explains his choice.
‘Angry’ woman
About 2.5 years ago, Rick started working on “ASML in miniature. About half the time he spent designing his structure on the laptop. Then the Lego bricks had to be flown in from far and wide because the bricks he needed could not be found in the average toy store. Once the bricks arrived from Canada and elsewhere, the ASML graduate could get to work.
Bit by bit, the contours of the ASML Campus became visible. However, this took time. Every week Rick was busy at home for about fifteen to twenty hours. This generated the necessary comments from his wife. “Especially in the beginning when I was sitting on the couch with the laptop, she asked if we couldn’t just watch a movie together. And then I just said yes,” he says with a laugh.
More than two years later, his structure is finally complete. The ASML Campus from Lego counts 25,000 cubes. And cost him about 2,500 euros. Meanwhile, his Lego project can no longer be seen at home, but in ASML’s arrival hall. The lego was acquired by the chip machine builder for an undisclosed amount. “It’s nice that colleagues can see it now,” he said.
Source: Studio040
Translation: Chaitali Sengupta. She also gives online INBURGERING classes.
