Metsä Fibre reaches final of EFQM Excellence Award

Metsä Fibre, part of Metsä Group, reached the final of the 2015 EFQM Excellence Award, Europe’s leading quality award. It was one of fifteen finalists, with BMW AG Werk Regensburg and WDH being selected as the winners in Brussels on 22 October 2015.

“The EFQM Excellence Model and our participation in leading quality management competitions enable us to optimise and further develop our operating model. We made it to the final of the EFQM Excellence Award, which shows that the quality management at Metsä Fibre is among the best in Europe. However, our journey continues, and we are aiming for a win,” says Ilkka Hämälä, CEO of Metsä Fibre.

The international jury of the EFQM Excellence Award visited Metsä Fibre’s locations last spring. Their feedback on Metsä Fibre’s strengths and opportunities will be studied carefully to take Metsä Fibre’s operations to a new level.

According to the jury, highly competent and committed employees who are proud of their work are Metsä Fibre’s most important resource. Metsä Fibre was also praised for its exceptionally inspiring, visionary and responsible management, as well as its culture of innovation.

“Metsä Fibre Oy is a world-leading producer of softwood pulp. Their products – sustainably and cost-efficiently produced softwood and birch pulp – are developed for the production of high-quality tissue and printing papers, specialty products and board. The jury was impressed by their sustainability strategy at corporate level, as well as the degree of employee engagement to their Innovation Forum,” says Marc Amblard, CEO of EFQM.

The EFQM Excellence Award is the “Champions League” of quality management for companies and organisations. Applicants must hold a five-star EFQM Recognised for Excellence qualification. In 2012, Metsä Fibre won the Excellence Finland Award granted by the Finnish Quality Association, based on assessments in accordance with the European EFQM Excellence Model. Metsä Fibre has systematically focused on quality management since the early 2000s.