Kiilto strengthens its construction business in Finland

Kiilto will acquire Lakan Betoni's dry product factory in Forssa to strengthen its pumpable screed business. With the acquisition, Kiilto will begin manufacturing bulk-supplied pumpable floor screeds in Finland.

The construction partner needs agility to meet the rapidly changing needs of the customers. The customer is at the heart of Kiilto’s pumpable screed service concept.

"The location of the factory near major construction projects, with good transport connections, will allow for a smooth service experience. The acquisition provides us with the opportunity to offer our customers a seamless "product as a service" concept: as opposed to using individual packaging, we can manufacture and deliver pumpable screed as an agile bulk product for the ever-changing needs of our customers. At the heart of the concept is a wide network of cooperation between a variety of players, which enables us to serve our customers all over Finland," says Miikka Haapa-aho, Construction Business Area Director at Kiilto.

According to Haapa-aho, floor solutions delivered as a service are quickly completed and also reduce visits to the site. As the product is transported by a tanker instead of in individual packaging, pumped flooring solutions also reduce packaging waste. Waste treatment is time-consuming and requires the organisation of waste treatment sites for construction sites where the limited space is often already a challenge in and of itself. In addition, the screed on board the pumping truck does not need to be protected from the weather, nor is it necessary to reserve storage space for the screed on sites dealing with a shortage of space, as would be the case with products traditionally supplied in large bags or pallets.

Lakan Betoni's current product range will not be transferred to Kiilto in the acquisition, rather the investment will be used to acquire the manufacturing capacity needed for the agile implementation of the pumpable screed business. At the same time, the goal is to safeguard Kiilto's ability for continued growth. The acquisition will enter into force on 14 September, at which time eight employees from Forssa's manufacturing business will also be transferred to Kiilto.

Lakka focuses its business operations in Loppi and Varkaus

Lakan Betoni sells its Forssa factory, at the same time giving up the production of self-levelling floor-levelling compound and, primarily, wall-levelling compounds. In all other respects, Lakka’s dry products business goes on unchanged. Lakka will focus on its own strong product ranges, such as dry concrete, soldering concrete, masonry mortar and pipe renovation.

The production of dry products will be concentrated at the company's Varkaus factory and, for the needs of customers in Southern Finland, a hub will be built at the Loppi factory with a wide selection where customers will find environmental concrete products, ingots, mortars and dry concrete all at the same location and for the same loads.

"This entails a significant logistical advantage for our customers. In the future, the full range of Lakka products will be available in three warehouses; in Loppi, Joensuu and Jalasjärvi," says Pertti Halonen, CEO of Lakan Betoni.

Kiilto
Kiilto is a 100-year-old Finnish family company that creates wellbeing from cleanliness and builds a sustainable future, taking both people and the environment into account. Kiilto develops, manufactures and markets chemical industry solutions in four business areas: construction, industrial bonding solutions, professional hygiene and consumer products. Kiilto operates in 11 countries and employs almost 1,000 people. In 2019, Kiilto’s turnover was approximately EUR 222 million. The key principles underlying Kiilto’s operations are environmental leadership, closeness and commitment to the future.
 

Lakan Betoni
Lakan Betoni is a family-owned company founded in 1965. The company develops and produces aggregate-based building materials, that include environmental concrete products, ingots, mortars, dry concretes, wall elements and ready-mixed concrete. Going forward, the company will operate in four areas in Finland; Joensuu, where the company's head office is located, Loppi, Jalasjärvi and Varkaus. Lakka's net sales in 2019 were 32.4 million euros and the company employs around 110 people. Lakka is the leading company in environmental concrete products in the consumer field in Finland and the company's ingot product range is the most comprehensive on the market. Over the course of 2020, Lakka will reduce the carbon footprint of concrete products by 30% thanks to its ongoing product development efforts. 

Additional information:

Miikka Haapa-aho
Construction Business Area Director
Kiilto
miikka.haapa-aho@kiilto.com
+358 (0)40 7510 813

Pertti Halonen
Chief Executive Officer
Lakan Betoni Oy
pertti.halonen@lakka.fi
+358 207 481 203

Tags: