Fiskars to begin improving the competitiveness and profitability of its Billnäs site
Fiskars Corporation Press release April 10, 2012
Fiskars plans to begin improving the competitiveness and profitability of its Billnäs site and to make the site’s operations more efficient. Fiskars also plans to adapt factory and process capacity to better reflect the standard production demand and to simplify the production network. The objective is to develop the operational model of the Garden business production site in a way that enables the company to react to changes faster than before and to respond flexibly to seasonal fluctuations and the requirements of the international operating environment.
As a result of the planned changes, Fiskars will start codetermination negotiations at the Billnäs site, which will concern a total of 409 people. If the planned actions go ahead, the number of employees at the site would be reduced by a maximum of 95 people. The negotiations will seek to find alternatives to possible reductions, such as training which would enable personnel to transfer from one task to another.
“The Billnäs factory has strong product development and manufacturing expertise and manufactures internationally renowned garden products. We have made significant investments in Billnäs over recent years, and it is important for us to ensure future operations at the Billnäs site by improving its profitability and making its production capacity more flexible to ensure international competitiveness. Unfortunately, the plant is not currently competitive in the markets where we operate and we regret that the planned changes may affect employees,” said Thomas Enckell, President of the Garden EMEA business area.
Fiskars is a leading brand in garden hand tools, with garden tool production facilities in Billnäs, Finland, in Poland, France, Norway, and Russia.
Further information:
Anu Ilvonen, Communications Manager
tel. +358 204 39 5446
anu.ilvonen@fiskars.com
Thomas Enckell, President, Garden EMEA
tel. +358 204 39 5531
Fiskars is a leading global supplier of consumer products for the home, garden and outdoors. The group has a strong portfolio of respected international brands, including Fiskars, Iittala and Gerber. Founded in 1649 and listed on NASDAQ OMX Helsinki, Fiskars is Finland’s oldest company. Fiskars recorded net sales of EUR 743 million in 2011, and employs some 3,400 people in over 20 countries. www.fiskarsgroup.com