Fiskars Strengthens Its Glass Expertise by Investing in a New Glass Batch House

The new batch house will be built in the Iittala glass factory. The investment is worth several million euro and it will further strengthen the Iittala factory’s position as a developer of internationally appreciated high quality glass products and a specialist in colored glass. Iittala, the key international brand of Fiskars Group, is renowned for its glass products.

Fiskars home business has specialized in the design, production, and marketing of high quality design products. International consumer trends show that values presented by brands are increasingly influencing consumers’ purchasing decisions. Iittala brand’s timeless design and the close cooperation between the designer, product development, and production have already spread the success story of Finnish design to more than 60 countries. There are already more than 170 Iittala stores and departments; the latest Iittala store to open was in Vilnius, Lithuania, at the end of April.

“The Iittala brand aims to grow on the international market, where it is essential that products stand out among those of competitors. In addition to top design, Iittala’s products are distinguished by their high quality. The competitiveness of our design products is based on holding the whole product development process in our own hands. Our own factories are important centers of material and manufacturing expertise for us, and the new glass batch house provides us with new opportunities to deepen our glass expertise. It also makes our own glass production more efficient by enabling increased automation in the handling of glass,” says Teemu Kangas-Kärki, President, Fiskars Home.

Fiskars has glass factories in Iittala and Nuutajärvi. The production of the Group’s glass factories focuses on selected industrially manufactured product series as well as mouth blown art, decoration, and utility articles.

In a batch house the ingredients of glass mass; sand, soda, calciumcarbonate and other materials, are batched and mixed to a mass that goes to melting process in the factory and to further treatment. The new glass production plant replaces the old batch house in Nuutajärvi, built in the 1970s. In the new glass production plant, the latest knowledge and solutions in environmental technology will be utilized and special attention will be paid to the safety of the process. The plant is expected to be operational by 2014.



Further information:

Teemu Kangas-Kärki, President, Home business area

tel. +358 20 39 5703

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

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20120524 Iittala Batch House_eng.pdf