Suominen
TypePublic company (Julkinen osakeyhtiö)
Nasdaq Helsinki: SUY1V
Founded1898 (1898)
FounderJuho Wiktor Suominen
Headquarters
Helsinki
,
Finland
Area served
Europe, Americas
Key people
Petri Helsky, CEO, Jaakko Eskola, Chairman of the board
Productsnonwovens
Revenue443.2 million euros (2021)[1]
26.9 million euros € (2021)[1]
20.7 million euros € (2021)[1]
Number of employees
710 (average in 2021)[1]
Websitewww.suominen.fi/en

Suominen Corporation is a Finnish company that makes nonwovens for wiping and hygiene products and healthcare applications. Suominen is the global market leader in nonwovens for wipes, and one of the world's biggest nonwovens manufacturers.[2] Suominen's nonwovens are made into wet wipes, sanitary towels, and swabs, for example.[3]

Suominen's history began in Finland in 1898, but the oldest of the company's subsidiaries was founded in 1767. Between 1982 and 2001, Suominen was part of the Lassila and Tikanoja Group.

The company's shares are listed on NASDAQ Helsinki. The company has production plants in the United States, Brazil, Spain, and Italy, as well as Finland, and it employs around 710 persons.

History

J. W. Suominen Oy (1898–1982)

Juho Wiktor Suominen started a tannery workshop in Nakkila, south-western Finland, in 1898.[3] J.W. Suominen's Nahkatehdas (“Leather Factory”) became a limited liability company in 1928.[4]

The Finnish shoe industry was in decline in the 1960s, and J. W. Suominen expanded from leather to begin manufacturing fiber products. It used nonwoven fabric to make cotton wool, wadding, wall-to-wall carpeting, and disposable wipes.[3][5] The company exited the leather industry in the 1970s.[4]

Part of Lassila and Tikanoja (1982–2001)

Lassila and Tikanoja bought J. W. Suominen Oy in early 1982.[3]

Suominen Yhtymä Oyj (2001–2011)

In September 2001, Lassila and Tikanoja was divided into two companies: Lassila and Tikanoja Oyj ja Suominen Yhtymä Oyj.[5]

In 2011, after the purchase of Ahlstrom's Home and Personal business, that is, wiping products, Suominen became the global market leader in nonwovens designed for wiping products sold in rolls.[2][5] The deal included production plants in Europe, the United States, and Brazil. As a result, Suominen almost doubled in size, and to finance the deal, the company organized a share-and-conversion issue in October 2011, which made Ahlstrom the biggest shareholder in Suominen.[6][7] This increased Suominen's net sales to 500 million euros and its number of staff to 1,300, with operations in 10 countries. Nina Kopola was appointed president and CEO in December 2011.[8]

Suominen Corporation (2012–)

In April 2012, the company name was shortened to Suominen Oyj (in English - Suominen Corporation).[9]

In 2013, the company headquarters and domicile were transferred from Tampere to Helsinki.[5]

In 2014, the majority of shares in the loss-making Flexibles business area was sold to a UK private-equity firm. After this, Suominen became a company dealing exclusively in nonwovens.[10]

President and CEO Nina Kopola resigned in August 2018. Tapio Engström acted as temporary president and CEO.[11] Pekka Ojanpää was scheduled to begin as President & CEO in December 2018, but died before he could do so.[12] Petri Helsky started work as Suominen Corporation's President & CEO in January 2019.[13]

In early 2020, Suominen Corporation, along with seven other listed companies, was transferred to a new market-value category following an annual review of NASDAQ's market value categories. The company was transferred from SMEs to small companies.[14][15] In April Suominen and VTT told that they had created a new multilayer fabric that could be used in respirators which was produced in Nakkila.[16] [17] The company achieved the highest turnover and profit in its history. The pandemic increased the demand for wiper products, and Suominen's customers made larger orders than usual.[18]

Organization

Suominen Group's parent company is Suominen Corporation, headquartered in Helsinki, Finland. In 2020, the company had a total of 689 employees, of which 304 were located in the United States, 137 in Italy, and 129 in Finland. The company also operated in Spain and Brazil.[18]

The company has divided its operations between two business areas - the Americas and Europe.[19] In 2019, the Americas accounted for 64 percent of the company's net sales.[20]

Markets

Suominen is one of the world's largest manufacturers of nonwovens, and is the global market leader in nonwovens for wipes. The next-biggest manufacturer, American consumer goods giant Kimberly-Clark, manufactures such fabrics primarily for its own branded products.[2] In 2018, Suominen held about 20% of the market.[21] About 63% of the company's turnover comes from South and North America, while the rest comes from Europe.[18]

Products

Suominen manufactures rolls of nonwovens for wiping and hygiene products and for healthcare needs. Nonwovens produced by the company are used to make products such as childcare and other wipes, sanitary towels, swabs, and respirators.[2] [22]

Materials

Suominen's portfolio of responsible products includes products made from renewable, recycled, or plastic-free raw materials and compostable or fully degradable nonwovens.[23] Suominen uses cellulose-based fibres, such as viscose and lyocell, as raw materials for its responsible-fibre fabrics. They accounted for more than half of its production in 2020.[18]

About 44% of its products are made from oil-based materials such as polypropylene and polyester.[18]

Suominen started researching new products in its innovation group in 2019, and the following year,[23] it set up a project called New Fiber Center, that explores new organic fibre fabrics that could be made from hemp, for example. The products are being tested in Nakkila and Windsor Locks in the US.[18] Hemp is similar to cotton as a raw material, but requires less land, water, and pesticides to grow. Suominen is also interested in testing flax and straw.[23]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Annual report 2021". Suominen. Retrieved 2022-03-18.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Salin, Markus (27 January 2014). "Suomisella pyyhkii paremmin" [Suominen is doing better]. Talouselämä (in Finnish). Retrieved 2020-04-07.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Suomisen taru käynnistyi nahkurinverstaasta – nykyisin se on suuri kuitukangasvalmistaja" [Suominen's story started with a tannery - today it is a large non-woven fabric manufacturer]. www.sydansatakunta.fi (in Finnish). 14 April 2018. Retrieved 2020-04-07.
  4. 1 2 "Nahkateollisuuden historia kertoo tarkkaan satakuntalaistehtaiden vaiheista" [The history of the leather industry tells the exact stages of Satakunta's factories]. www.sydansatakunta.fi (in Finnish). 23 February 2020. Retrieved 2020-04-07.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Suominen as a company". www.suominen.fi. Retrieved 2020-04-07.
  6. ↑ Seppälä, Jarmo. "Ahlstrom myy pyyhkeitä Suomiselle" [Ahlstrom sells wiping products to Suominen]. Tekniikkatalous (in Finnish). Retrieved 2020-04-07.
  7. ↑ "Pörssin ainoa naispomo: Jos lapsia hankkii, ne on hoidettava" [The only female boss on the stock exchange: If you have children, you have to take care of them]. Taloussanomat (in Finnish). Retrieved 2020-04-07.
  8. ↑ Salo, Irmeli (24 November 2011). "Kulttuurijohtaja". Talouselämä (in Finnish). Retrieved 2020-04-07.
  9. ↑ Kauppalehti. "Kauppalehti". Tärkeimmät talousuutiset | Kauppalehti (in Finnish). Retrieved 2020-04-07.
  10. ↑ "Suominen myi osiaan ja paransi tulosnäkymiään" [Suominen sold some of its parts and improved its result views]. Yle Uutiset (in Finnish). 11 July 2014. Retrieved 2020-04-07.
  11. ↑ "Naisjohtajien pioneerin Nina Kopolan ura Suomisella päättyi" [Nina Kopola, the Pioneer for female leaders in Finland, ended her career in Suominen]. Yle Uutiset (in Finnish). 3 August 2018. Retrieved 2020-04-07.
  12. ↑ "Zimbabwen lentoturmassa kuolivat Lassila & Tikanojan toimitusjohtaja Pekka Ojanpää ja metsäyhtiö UPM:n johtaja Heikki Vappula: "Tämä tragedia jättää meidät kaikki sanattomiksi"". www.iltalehti.fi (in Finnish). Retrieved 2020-04-07.
  13. ↑ "Suominen menetti uuden toimitusjohtajansa lentoturmassa – Nyt tehtävään valittiin Petri Helsky". www.aamulehti.fi (in Finnish). 21 December 2018. Retrieved 2020-04-07.
  14. ↑ Erkkilä, Jorma (2019-12-18). "Neljä Helsingin pörssin yhtiötä siirtyy isompaan kokoluokkaan". SalkunRakentaja (in Finnish). Retrieved 2020-04-07.
  15. ↑ "SUY1V, Suominen Oyj, (FI0009010862) - Nasdaq". www.nasdaqomxnordic.com. Retrieved 2020-04-07.
  16. ↑ "Suominen kehitti yhteistyössä VTT:n kanssa uuden kankaan hengityssuojaimiin". Yle Uutiset. 17 June 2020. Retrieved 2021-05-21.
  17. ↑ "Nakkilassa Suomisen tehtaalla valmistettava suojainmateriaali testattavaksi". Satakunnan Kansa (in Finnish). 2020-04-14. Retrieved 2021-05-24.
  18. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Rehn, Silva (21 September 2021). "Pyyhitkö selluun, hamppuun vai nokkoseen? – Kuitukangasyhtiö Suominen etsii uusia raaka-aineita, koska niiden varaan brändit laskevat". Talouselämä (in Finnish). Retrieved 2022-03-18.
  19. ↑ "About us". www.suominen.fi. Retrieved 2020-04-07.
  20. ↑ Rajala, Ari. "Suominen sai vetoapua koronaviruksesta – Sijoittajat palkitsivat käänneyhtiön kurssinousulla". Kauppalehti (in Finnish). Retrieved 2021-05-21.
  21. ↑ "Top 40 Nonwovens Industry Companies - Nonwovens Industry Magazine - News, Markets & Analysis for the Nonwovens Industry". www.nonwovens-industry.com. Retrieved 2020-04-07.
  22. ↑ "Osavuosikatsaukset | Suominen teki ennätystuloksen pandemian vauhdittamana". Helsingin Sanomat (in Finnish). 2020-08-12. Retrieved 2021-05-21.
  23. 1 2 3 Lähdevuori, Laura. "Suominen uskoo, että vastuullisuudella pyyhkii yhä paremmin – Asiakkaita kiinnostaa nyt hamppu". Kauppalehti (in Finnish). Retrieved 2022-03-18.
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