One of KWH’s main brands is Weholite, a high-quality structured-wall pipe. The Weholite pipe is manufactured by spiral welding PE- or PP-profiles.
The knowledge company Development-oriented KWH Group is a market leader in many niches. “We want to spearhead technological development,” says Peter Höglund, President of KWH Group, one of Finland’s biggest family-owned corporations. gunnar bäckman
IT IS ALL ABOUT SPEARHEADING technological development, and that is something you achieve only by making big inputs into product development. This is one way to summarise the strategy of KWH Group, which boasts top-notch competence and a globally strong market position in several niches. “We develop new technology, and can do so thanks to the networks we’ve built to provide us with specialists in all areas,” explains Peter Höglund, Group President. KWH Mirka, presented on the following page, is the most development-intensive part of the company. Functional pipes The largest business group in terms of turnover is KWH Pipe, a manufacturer of plastic pipe systems. “We focus on niche markets for functional piping solutions (FPS),” says Höglund.
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The mining industry is a typical customer. KWH’s plastic pipes are more durable than steel pipes and save customers money. Their costs are minimal compared to the losses incurred from production standstill during pipe replacements. KWH Group is also involved in the plastics industry through two other companies. KWH Plast creates special packaging for the food industry, while Prevex makes products for the plumbing sector. KWH Plast is primarily a development company, but it also works for other manufacturers. Its goal is to replace energyintensive materials, such as glass and cans, with plastics that require less energy. Prevex is a typical example of KWH’s niche philosophy. The company is a European market leader in traps for sinks. KWH Logistics, in turn, operates in ten ports on the Finnish west coast through the Backman-Trummer Group. Even the logistics sector has room for a strong, narrow niche. KWH Freeze is Finland’s dominant cold storage provider, with around half of all frozen foods in Finland passing through its facilities. Long-term perspective The KWH Group is one of Finland’s biggest family-owned corporations. The company has been involved in many industrial sec-
tors and has always succeeded in adapting to the demands of the times. A conversation with Peter Höglund is about change, renewal and rapid development, but also about endurance and the family company’s long-term perspective. “Whenever you set up something new, you wait 20 to 25 years before it earns you income. It’s our long-term perspective that enables us to develop new things.” c
kwh group ltd Tel. +358 20 778 7111 www.kwhgroup.com Turnover 2010 (Group): €484.5 million Employees 2010 (Group): 2,627 KWH Pipe Ltd www.kwhpipe.com Backman-Trummer www.backman-trummer.fi KWH Freeze Ltd www.kwhfreeze.com KWH Plast Ltd www.kwhplast.com Oy Prevex Ab www.prevex.com
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