For a couple of weeks' time now, the customers of Metso’s former Pulp, Paper and Power businesses have been dealing with a new, independent company, bearing the renowned, time-honored name of Valmet. The new company was born on December 31, 2013.
“The name is Valmet, but the company itself is quite different from the former Valmet days,” explains Pasi Laine, President and CEO of Valmet Corporation. The company has during the last decade acquired know-how and heritage from a number of companies and businesses through mergers and acquisitions, making it a strong player in all of its present operating areas. “The things that have remained and have been developed further are the quality and reliability of our technology and operations as well as commitment to our customers. We are glad to be able to incorporate in the new company all the good connotations the Valmet name still has in the minds of many persons within the industry, ” Laine continues.
Why the demerger?
“With a focused business scope, we will be able to develop our operations more briskly and efficiently towards an even greater customer and investor value. The pulp, paper and energy industries are our main employers, challenging us to offer ever more competitive products, more successful projects and more high-class customer service”, Laine says.
Good market position ensures a good start
The new Valmet has started its operation in a good market position. The company is the number one or number two supplier for the pulp, board and paper industries as well as for the bio-energy industry. “Our main advantages are a large installed base and excellent customer relations. We have an extensive and most capable service network around the world, employing thousands of committed service experts who are in daily contact helping the customers. On top of this, we have a large technology portfolio to offer, enabling our customers to draw long-term value out of their rebuilds and new investments.” “In spite of all this, we like to regard ourselves as a challenger. To be able to stay at the frontline of technology, we need a humble attitude, and we need to listen to our customers and to their needs more carefully than ever. Today’s business is based on cooperation and mutual understanding,” Pasi Laine points out.
Traditional and new ways of business
The basic elements of the current strategy will continue to be important also in the new Valmet. “The market area-based operating model will remain vital for our business. We want to work close to our customers in all our main markets and be easily accessible. We will rely even more than before on our services business. The services, supported by our strong process know-how, have a lot to offer for the benefit of our customers.”
Extensive services, strong board and paper machine know-how, full-scope pulp mill deliveries, modern energy generation solutions - these are, according to Pasi Laine, some of the core items on Valmet’s agenda. In the demerger process, Metso’s Automation business remained with Metso. The close cooperation will continue and the synergies utilized between Automation and Valmet businesses to create the best possible customer value. Furthermore, Laine wants to draw attention to the new, innovative, bio-based solutions that the company has been actively developing. Gasification of waste and biomass, pyrolysis, lignin separation from black liquor, prehydrolysis, to name just a few of these technologies, will create new business opportunities to extract an even bigger value out of biomass. They will open up new revenue streams both for the pulp and paper industry and for Valmet. New end products and innovative technologies also enable increased flexibility to cope with today’s rapidly changing business environment.
Committed to customers’ success
Where does the President and CEO personally see the new Valmet Corporation in five years’ time? “We are a modern, and agile service and technology provider, working as partners, close to our customers, with an extensive, own technology offering. Even more know-how and capabilities, maybe fewer own production assets. Our bioenergy solutions will create added value for customers,” says Pasi Laine, explaining his vision of the future. “All of this can only be realized with the help of a dedicated, knowledgeable, committed personnel, taking care of service operations close to customers or working on our technology as centralized resources. We all have our contribution to make to the success of our customers and to the success of Valmet”, Pasi Laine concludes.
