by Marcel Mattijssen | 22 February 2026 | AED cabinets, News
Practical experience leads to a clear choice
After using Rotaid AED cabinets, City AED has decided to switch entirely to cabinets from Nexus Smart AED Cabinets.
The Nexus Smart AED Cabinets enclosure
All new installations use Nexus cabinets. Existing Rotaid cabinets will also be replaced in stages over the coming period.
This decision is based on our own practical experience. Over the past few years, we have installed, maintained and inspected AEDs throughout the Netherlands, giving us a clear picture of how AED cabinets perform in practice.
Our experience with the previous cabinet
Over the past few years, we have regularly encountered situations with Rotaid cabinets that, in our view, do not meet the standards expected of a public AED cabinet.
With Rotaid AED cabinets, our observations included:
Still from an RTV Oost report. Source: YouTube (clickable)
- too many instances where the cabinet was very difficult to open, which we consider unacceptable in an emergency.
- temperatures inside the cabinet that, according to our observations, became too high on sunny days (>70°C), exposing the AED to prolonged heat that may affect its performance;
- and deterioration of the cabinet and AED through prolonged exposure to sunlight and UV radiation;
An AED cabinet must be reliable
An AED is intended to save lives. We believe the cabinet housing it should not introduce uncertainty. That is why we have chosen Nexus. The Nexus cabinet was developed in collaboration with TU Delft, with particular attention to practical experience from the field.
Still from a cabinet test. Source: YouTube (clickable)
According to experts, the Nexus cabinet fully meets the characteristics we consider important for long-term public use, including weather protection, temperature management, durability and a reliable opening mechanism.
For this reason, all new installations will use Nexus cabinets from now on. Existing Rotaid cabinets will also be replaced with Nexus AED cabinets as quickly as possible over the coming period.
If you have questions about this change, please contact us.
More information:
AED Cabinets Summer Testing
RTV Oost report
Nexus website
by Marcel Mattijssen | 18 February 2026 | Uncategorized
PRESS RELEASE
Blaricum, 18 February 2026
Call to HartslagNu and the Ministry of Health: make registration transparent, verifiable and complete to prevent apparent ‘gaps’ on AED maps
City AED Nederland reports that hundreds of public AEDs accessible 24/7 across the Netherlands are no longer visible, or are not visible, in the HartslagNu alert system. As a result, maps and apps may show an incomplete picture of AED coverage and apparent ‘gaps’ may arise in areas where an operational public AED is available.
According to City AED Nederland, this has two direct consequences. First, volunteer responders and residents may be unsure which nearby AEDs are actually included in the alert system. Second, municipalities, funds and other financiers may make decisions based on an incomplete map, potentially leading to extra AEDs being installed where a working public AED is already available.
Examples from practice: Arnhem and Amersfoort
City AED Nederland regularly receives questions from volunteer responders asking why a physically present public City AED, accessible 24/7, cannot be found in HartslagNu. City AED Nederland points to examples in Arnhem and Amersfoort, where responders say they know the AED and can locate it, but cannot see it in the system.
“This is not about putting up more cabinets, but about reliable and complete information,” says Marcel Mattijssen, founder of City AED Nederland. “Making decisions based on an incomplete map creates a false sense of security and costs lives. That is unnecessary and can be resolved with transparent criteria and a verifiable process.”
Call for action: four immediate measures
City AED Nederland calls on HartslagNu and the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport to take the following steps promptly:
- Publish transparent registration criteria, including clear reasons for any temporary or permanent exclusion or lack of visibility.
- A trackable registration process for AED managers, including status updates, timeframes and required supporting documents.
- An independent review and appeal process available to AED managers and owners.
- Carry out periodic audits of completeness and accuracy of AED registrations, so that administrative omissions do not create ‘gaps’ on the map.
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