English - Vahterus Oy

HOT COLD
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Future Forerunner
“We aim to be the
forerunner in the area of
plate heat exchangers, a
leader in the technology.
We are working towards this goal and believe in
strong growth,” summarises Managing Director
Mauri Kontu.
Every four or five years, Vahterus defines its
long-term strategy. The strategy established last
year was entitled Dynamo 2014.
The name reflects the extra drive and strength
we are working for together. We have also set our
production and result targets to be reached by
2014. Our target is an annual production rate of
10,000 units – so we are facing a great growth
challenge.
The Dynamo process resulted in a compact,
more customer-friendly strategy. The three most
important points are:
“The customer is our number one priority,
we must have the desire to succeed and, finally,
we must be enthusiastic about change,” stresses
Kontu.
These points have been discussed together
with our entire 150-member team. The strategy
must be applied in practice and it must be seen in
our every-day work.
A leader in the technology must have thorough
knowledge of the production and heat technology
as well as engineering skills.
“This requires a strong investment in product
development and research,” says Kontu.
The company cooperates with three
universities of technology and several other
research and educational institutions.
Other corner stones are development of
the skills of our own personnel and an active
outlook. There seems to be plenty of readiness
to change and improve, as Vahterus is one of
the top companies in proposing development
initiatives amongst small and medium-sized
companies in Finland. In 2009, the company
was sixth in proposing initiatives per person
within the entire Finnish industrial sector.
“We have worked consistently to develop
our quality management systems and
guidance. We value improvement and positive
change. We try to maintain a good level of
communication within our departments,” says
Kontu.
Development team work enables us to look
at issues that the employees themselves want
to improve in their workplace.
Eyes on 2 0 1 4
Some of the greatest global challenges of the
21st century are saving energy and protecting
the environment. Heat technology is one of
the fields which has a lot to offer.
“We are operating in a good field of
business.” Our technology can help to carry
out projects by using natural and climatefriendly
media. Other important benefits of
our products are saved space and wide range
of usage. The small size enables savings to be
achieved, especially with new investments.
More opportunities are offered by the
increased use of and greater requirements
for cooling technology. Large refrigerated
warehouses and systems used by retailers
require new cooling solutions. At the moment,
approximately half of our production goes to
cooling technology applications.
“The customer is our
number one priority,
we must have the desire to
succeed and, finally,
we must be enthusiastic
about change”
&
Closer customer relations
“The important aspect of the Dynamo strategy is
its aim to increase and widen our expertise. This
way we can meet our customer’s requirements
more efficiently,” says Kontu.
We must get close to the customer so that
together we can find the heat exchange solutions
that make their operations effortless. Kontu is
convinced that the customers’ needs must be
anticipated before the customers themselves
realise it.
“We must be able to present a plan and ask
if they would find it helpful to do thing this way.
When we know our customer’s field of business
well enough, we can develop whole new
products in cooperation with the customer.”
Acquiring the necessary knowledge of the
customers’ area of expertise is a great challenge
for the Vahterus personnel.
“It is important that we train our own people
to know our customers’ area of operation. This
calls for investments. But our customers are also
prepared to provide us with training, show us
around their production facilities, demonstrate
their work processes and explain their priorities.”
R ecov er y in sight
Even though the recession in 2009 also hit heat
exchanger production, Vahterus has held on
to its employees. Today, Kontu sees clear signs
of recovery. There will soon be the need again
for more personnel to meet the increased
production targets.
The main production facilities will remain in
Kalanti. However, the growing market, especially
in Asia and America, will also require the launch
of production elsewhere by 2014. This location
is likely to be somewhere close to these growing
markets.
Vahterus, which celebrates its 20th
anniversary this year, is still a very small operator
on the market despite its rapid growth.
“The market is entirely open if you have
the right product and expertise. It is up to us
to ensure that we all have work to do,” stresses
Mauri Kontu.
Vahterus’ Strength
– Where Does it Come from?
Vahterus Oy’s twenty-year journey as a business enterprise
is a significant achievement. With its own specialised heat
exchanger solutions the company has found its niche
and its customer-base in the competitive international
markets. The company’s development has been extraordinarily
focussed; the family enterprise that was founded in the family’s
barn in the village of Vahterus in Kalanti, Finland, now employs 150
staff members. Ninety percent of the company’s customer base
are situated outside of Finland, in over one hundred countries
across all continents. Everyone at Vahterus can and should be
proud of this achievement. Very few companies have managed
this sort of feat.
I have had the opportunity to follow Vahterus’ development
from its very start as Chairman of the Board and an owner of a
small share of the company. This has been extremely interesting
and rewarding as I have been part of a growing family enterprise,
whose award-winning technological solutions are recognised all
around the world. I am very grateful for this opportunity.
Where does Vahterus’ strength come from? This strength that
has seen the company grow in profitability for 20 years, between
10–50 percent annually. Few companies can achieve this level
of growth. As a company develops, there are constant bottle
necks that need resolving. Sometimes these arise in sales, design,
production, financing, financial administration, patents, resource
allocation or in product deliveries, to name just a few examples.
It has been astonishing to witness how many different business
areas the company and its staff have been able to continuously
develop and grow through training and learning.
I have tried to come up with the reason behind Vahterus’
vitality during its twenty-year success story. The following is my
own summary of the key factors:
• the drive exhibited by the company’s owner,Mauri Kontu,
• the company has kept its feet on the ground,
• Vahterus’ continuous technological outlook, expertise and its
ability to come up with new innovations,
• the company being a family enterprise in Kalanti in the
Vakka-Suomi sub-region of Finland,
• the company’s decision makers are known
• a continuous desire to develop and to challenge the markets
with the company’s own different solutions.
When Vahterus was first founded it was built on Mauri’s vision and
enthusiasm. He has now gained a group of enthusiastic people to
work with. Sinikka Kontu’s skilled management of the company’s
financial administration has also played a key role. However, as the
company’s operations have expanded, its success has been built
on the enthusiasm and commitment of the large group of experts
at Vahterus and on the trust shown by its customers.
The long period of development has of course also included
its fair share of growing pains, surprises and even failures. But the
company has learned from these and grown as a result. Having a
successful business includes taking controlled risks – sometimes
even large ones. In a family enterprise a certain level of caution is
a basic principle, as it is important to ensure the family’s interests
in the long-term. A good indicator of this is the company’s strong
financial standing even after a year of recession. This is a good
place to continue from as growth begins again.
After a well-earned moment of celebration, work will continue
at Vahterus. The company sees many opportunities to continue
along this growth path in its present and new markets and with
products that are innovative and constantly being developed. It
is important that the company ensures that both its customers
and staff remain enthusiastic and committed in the future. I
believe that by continuing as a family enterprise and by keeping
family enterprise values at the heart of the company Vahterus will
continue its positive development.
I would like to thank the entire staff at Vahterus for their
excellent work and I wish them every success in the future –
Vahterus has a lot of strength!
Aappo Kontu
Chairman of the Board