Norelco invests in Savonlinna – 60 new jobs for the region

Norelco has launched a growth program that will require a number of new experts and lead to the development of innovative new products for customers. To accelerate growth, Norelco has signed a growth agreement with the City of Savonlinna. The company will also purchase an industrial property owned by the city in the Nojanmaa industrial area, near Norelco’s headquarters.

The City of Savonlinna and Norelco have signed a growth agreement, according to which the city will support the training and recruitment of Norelco’s workforce by means of numerous practical measures.

Norelco Oy is a leading Finnish manufacturer of power distribution systems. Growth in demand for electricity sector solutions is strongly reflected in the company’s operations: Norelco’s turnover is growing robustly, and the company employs roughly 250 people. 

“To make this growth happen, we will also need to make significant investments in corporate culture, premises, machinery and IT. The new growth agreement with the City of Savonlinna is a building block that will help us improve training and recruitment and promote the development of increasingly demanding products in Savonlinna,” says Norelco’s Managing Director Ari Hämäläinen.

Norelco’s growth is driven by the green transition and its impacts on several different business sectors. 

Fossil fuels are being replaced by renewable energy sources and by many new technology solutions that utilize electricity, for instance, in motor vehicles and heating. Implementing this change will require a massive amount of electrotechnology in order to distribute energy from production to consumption and production points. At the same time, power plants, hydrogen production plants and battery storage systems will be connected to the electricity network, and this will require electrotechnical solutions. 

Joint efforts to increase the area’s and companies’ holding power 

In the first phase of the growth program, Norelco will hire 60 new employees. Norelco recognized a while ago already that growth calls for recruitment not just within Finland, but also from abroad: the company currently has some 50 international employees. 

Under the growth agreement, the City of Savonlinna commits to develop increasingly diverse methods for recruiting and integrating international employees. 

“For us, this means that people moving to Finland will receive broader support and more opportunities to integrate into Savonlinna and Finnish working life than we would be able to offer with our own resources. This is important in order to secure a permanent workforce and to build a successful work community. We believe that multiculturalism is a significant asset for us as a company,” says Hämäläinen.

Strong focus on training and product development

The city of Savonlinna creates conditions for business investment, including product development.

“In practice, this means that the city and South-Eastern Finland University of Applied Sciences (XAMK) will build laboratory and testing environments for electrical and automation technology. Besides premises, investments will also be made in testing equipment,” explains Hämäläinen.  

The city will additionally invest in electrical and automation engineering training in Savonlinna.

“We have found a good model of cooperation with the Samiedu Vocational College and XAMK,” says Hämäläinen.

Norelco’s production facilities in Savonlinna will continue to grow

For the expansion investment, Norelco will purchase an industrial property owned by the city in the Nojanmaa industrial area. More space is required to meet the needs of growing production and engineering. Already earlier this summer, the company announced the start of operations in another new production facilities in Savonlinna.

Mayor Janne Laine thanks Hämäläinen for the company’s investments in Savonlinna.

“Norelco’s robust investment will create a strong growth impetus for further strengthening Savonlinna’s vitality. Norelco has created here in Savonlinna a business model that has enabled it to conquer the Finnish market with its electricity distribution solutions,” says Laine. 

“Savonlinna is currently enjoying tremendous positive development, which is reflected in the growth in industrial jobs and the improvement in employment and net migration. It is one of the few Finnish cities where the number of industrial jobs has grown over the past decade,” stresses Laine. 

The goal of this collaboration is also to build and pilot a new operating model that will more broadly serve growth-oriented companies in the Savonlinna area,” Hämäläinen sums up.

More information, please contact: 

Norelco Oy, Managing Director Ari Hämäläinen tel. +358 50 529 1919, ari.hamalainen@norelco.fi

Savonlinna Mayor Janne Laine tel. +358 44 417 4001, janne.laine@savonlinna.fi