Nurminen Logistics

logistics in russia
Nurminen Logistics is an operator
to be reckoned with in russia, too. p. 8
customs facilitates foreign trade
Nina Sirén is a long-time Customs
employee. p. 20
Winds of change
nurminenlogistics.com
Magazine for Stakeholders 1/2011
NEWs
Nurminen Logistics’
Nurminen
Artur, Niko, Tiina and Vera
have changed jobs. p. 22
coNtENts
V.SoMerpuro
V.SoMerpuro
2
19 Tiina Åhrlund charges her batteries
by bowling.
S.LeppIAho
16 The workplace of driver
Timo pelto is well equipped.
26 Mantsinen’s machinery is
transported by road and rail.
1/2011
19 From
3 Editorial
Niina haasola ponders whether good
deeds are the key to happiness.
4 Logistics
online
Nurminen Logistics launches more
versatile web pages.
5 News
Information on which trade fairs are
worth visiting this spring.
6 Nurminen
Logistics’
financial year 2010
Nurminen Logistics’ most relevant
market, trade between Finland and the
CIS countries, started growing in the
summer of 2010.
Nurminen News 1/2011
8 Russia
– what does
Nurminen Logistics do
there?
russia is an immense, growing
logistics market.
14 Centrefold
map
A map of europe and the CIS
countries for your reference.
16 For
Timo, the truck
is both a home and a
workplace
When working, Timo pelto takes a
fridge and a microwave oven with
him wherever he goes.
a bowler
a ball girl to
Tiina Åhrlund got inspired by bowling
as an adult.
20 New
tasks
Job rotation and new recruits.
22 Foreign
trade runs
smoothly in compliance
with regulations
Customs is an important partner for
everyone involved in foreign trade.
26 References
Mantsinen Group Ltd oy manufactures
material handling machinery and
harbour cranes.
3
Editorial
Pay it forward
I about the habit of doing good deeds for others, which
has found its way to Finland as well. Well, I suppose
this habit has been here for ages, but now it is a conscious choice that some people have even chosen as their
lifestyle. Interestingly, people in the United States have
long celebrated an official Random Act of Kindness Day.
The act of kindness can be anything: letting the person behind you in the grocery line go ahead or giving your colleague positive feedback. The idea is to make someone else
feel good with a small effort.
A good deed will surely pay back, since researchers have shown
that happy people are inclined to help friends and
strangers alike. The website of the Finnish Medical Society Duodecim has
exercises aimed at increasing happiness, and
one of them is specifically
related to doing good deeds. It advises you to select one day
of the week when you will perform either one big or three to
five smaller acts of kindness. It is important to make sure
even the small deeds happen on the same day. They say you
should do a different deed every time and continue the pattern for ten weeks. After that, you should be happier. Who
knows? But I doubt this method would make anyone unhappier.
According to research, 50% of our happiness is genetic,
whereas 10% depends on external factors such as health
and prosperity and as much as 40% corresponds with personal attitude. The latter is something every one of us can
influence. I wonder what kind of a change would occur in
the happiness levels of the readers of this magazine and
at workplaces, if each of us tried to perform more unselfish acts of kindness. The best thing about happiness is that
it does not take anything away from somebody else. On the
contrary – they say it’s contagious.
40% of our
happiness
corresponds
with personal
attitude.
V.Somerpuro
happened to hear a discussion on TV the other day
Niina Haasola is Communications Manager at
Nurminen Logistics and editor-in-chief of the renewed
Nurminen News magazine. The new magazine is a
combination of ­Nurminen’s
former employee magazine, Nurminen Nyt, and the
stakeholder magazine Nurminen News. The magazine is published twice a
year. Vote for the best article and give us feedback according to the instructions
on page 5!
Nurminen News 1/2011
4
Nurminen NOW
Top3: Nurminen Logistics’
new website
Nurminen Logistics recently launched a new website at nurminenlogistics.com.
The new site provides more comprehensive information on the company’s services
and also lists other interesting logistics-related sites. The site is available in three
languages, making it easy to make a request for quotation, give feedback or vote for
the best article in this magazine, for instance.
wide selection of
1Areferences
The new site lists several of Nurminen
Logistics’ references. In each reference,
both the client’s and Nurminen Logistics’ representatives provide their views
on the project under discussion. The
references are divided into five categories: rail transport, special and heavy
transport, terminal services, forwarding
and project services.
Nurminen News 1/2011
Fleet
2
information
within easy reach
Five Nurminen
3
Logistics
employees tell us
The new site features descriptions of both Nurminen Logistics’ special and heavy transport trailer stock and railway
wagons. There are measurement images of trailers as well
as key facts about wagons, including images.
In the Careers section you can find
information about job openings at
Nurminen Logistics and the jobs of
five Nurminen Logistics employees.
The featured jobs vary from that of
an Assistant Business Controller to
that of a terminal worker.
about their jobs
5
NurmINEN NoW
Topi Saarenhovi appointed Nurminen
Logistics Plc’s President and CEO
The Board of Directors of Nurminen Logistics has on 6 April
2011 appointed Mr Topi Saarenhovi, M.Sc. (Tech.), the new president and Ceo of the company.
Saarenhovi will start in his new
position on 1 May 2011. The company’s current Acting Ceo Mr
Antti Sallila will continue his duties as the CFo of the company
as of 1 May 2011.
Topi Saarenhovi, born 1967,
has previously acted as Senior
Vice president of Glaston plc
where he was responsible for the
Machines business area. prior to
that, he has, for example, acted
as the president of Amomatic Ltd
and as Factory Director of Wärtsilä plc.
– Nurminen Logistics is a wellknown logistics company of good
reputation in an interesting stage
A new Board of Directors
of development. It has a strong
brand, excellent logistics knowhow and a leading market position especially in the railway logistics to russia and other CIS
countries. I look forward to further develop Nurminen Logistics
according to the strategy aiming
to growth and better profitability together with its skilful personnel, customers and partners, Topi
Saarenhovi says.
The new president and Ceo
will presented more thoroughly in
the next issue of Nurminen News.
The Annual General Meeting of Nurminen
Logistics elected a new Board of Directors on
6 April 2011. Olli Pohjanvirta (chairman), Eero Hautaniemi, Tero Kivisaari, Juha Nurminen and Jukka Nurminen will continue as members of the Board. Jan Lönnblad, Ceo of John
Nurminen oy (pictured on the left), was elected
as a new member to the Board, whereas Rolf
Saxberg and Antti Pankakoski left the Board.
rolf Saxberg (pictured on the right) had been a
member of the Board of Nurminen Logistics and
its predecessor John Nurminen oy since 1994.
NURMINEN
LOGISTICS
NRO 4 •
Nurminen
OYJ • HENKILÖSTÖLEHTI
joulukuu
2008
NRO 3
VotE!
2006
NURMINEN
LOGISTICS
NRO 2 •
OYJ • HENKILÖSTÖLEHTI
kesäkuu
2008
NURMINEN
ja muut
vuosaarelaiset
Monta
syytä juhlaan
työskentelevät
•
lähellä Tullia
Обзор статей Leonid hurahti
•
hippoihin
на русском
•
языке
NURMINEN LOGISTICS
Nurminen
Nyt
OYJ • HENKILÖSTÖLEHTI
NRO 2
KESÄKUU
2007
Nurminen
•
Nyt
Nurminen
JOHN NURMINEN
KONSERNIN
HENKILÖSTÖLEHTI
NRO 1
MAALISKUU
Nyt
kesän Nurmisella
• Reiskan
2008 -messut
päivä Mussalossa
onnistuivat
• Обзор
статьей
odotusten
на русском
mukaisesti
языке
Katariina
ja muut
vuosaarelaiset
Monta
syytä juhlaan
työskentelevät
•
lähellä Tullia
Обзор статей Leonid hurahti
•
hippoihin
на русском
•
языке
JOHN NURMINEN
Nurminen
NRO 4
JOULUKUU
2007
NURMINEN
LOGISTICS
NRO 3 •
OYJ • HENKILÖSTÖLEHTI
lokakuu
2009
4
Nurmisella
Vuoden
vahva vuosi
2006 tilinpäätöstiiviste
lmä 6
Työilmapiiri
tehdään
Niiralassa
yhdessä
hyvä yhteishenki
The vote for the best article in the
4/2010 issue of Nurminen Logistics’
employee magazine, Nurminen Nyt,
was won by the article on everyday
work at the Vartius site, Tärpättiä
Suomeen, perunaa Venäjälle (Turpentine to Finland, potatoes to russia). It received no less than 42% of the votes cast. otherwise, the vote was exceptionally close: there were
as many as five articles in second place, with each
receiving 11% of the votes. These articles included
the editorial, the article on St. petersburg in the
My City series, Pärinää töissä ja vapaalla (rumble on and off duty), the article on the opening
of the D hall in Niirala and the article on Martti
Immonen’s collection hobby. Jorma Kervinen’s
column also received a lot of votes. Five prizes
were raffled among all voters, and the lucky winners were Pirkko Partanen, Seija HummelinUusilehto, Seppo Turunen, Miina Sokura and
Marko Raasu. Congratulations to the winners!
You can vote for the best article in this magazine at www.nurminenlogistics.com. Two tickets
to the puistoBlues festival in summer 2011 will be
raffled among all voters that have voted by 31 May
2011.
Nyt
14
Hyvä kehityskeskus
Mikon ja
telu
Sakarin
tapaan 6
Terminaalipal
velua
Staraja Russassa
12
on levoton
Suuri pörssinumero
Mikä muuttuu?
Haastatteluss
4
Tullauspalvelvelu
a kaksi
t laajeni
ässää
idässä ja
lännessä
16
Kasvu
tarvitsee
Myynnin
tekijänsä
valmennusprojek
Aito pomo
tapaus kotonakin
17
LOGISTICS
NRO 2 •
Jorma, Leif,
täydentävät
Nurminen
OYJ • HENKILÖSTÖLEHTI
toukokuu
Nyt
Nurmisen
henkilöstö
Presidentti
120-vuotiasta juhli
Tarja Halosen
yhtiötä
iltapäivä
Huolintatalossa
Suomen
paras
logistiikka-alan
Nykytaiteen
työpaikka
näyttely
taidekoordinaatto
rin
näkökulmasta
2009
JOHN NURMINEN
KONSERNIN
HENKILÖSTÖLEHTI
NRO 2
KESÄKUU
NURMINEN
2006
LOGISTICS
NRO 1 •
Sähköinen
tiedonsiirto
toimii
M-Realin
ja Nurmisen
välillä
Tomi ja
Tanja
hallitusta
• Pata Suhonen toimivat Vuosaaressa
Обзор статей
on Vainikkalan
на русском
kuuluisin
языке
kokki
Petri, Vesa
OYJ • HENKILÖSTÖLEHTI
maaliskuu
2009
solmukohda
• Jorma
t
Обзор статей oli kesällä Susisaaren
на русском
keisari
языке
Sotšissa
Nurminen
OYJ • HENKILÖSTÖLEHTI
lokakuu
2010
NURMINEN
LOGISTICS
NRO 2 •
2010
NRO 1
MAALISKUU
2006
NURMINEN
LOGISTICS
NRO 4 •
OYJ • HENKILÖSTÖLEHTI
joulukuu
2009
Moskovan
pakkastalven
helteiset
viikot
Nurminen
juhlii
pitkää taivaltaan
Jukka,
Jari ja
Ekaterina
Harri ja
Peter lataavat
– sopeuttamis
akkujaan
töitä käytännössä
soittamalla
Обзор статей
• Suuri
pikkujoulutapetti
на русском
языке
Nurminen
OYJ • HENKILÖSTÖLEHTI
JOHN NURMINEN
KONSERNIN
HENKILÖSTÖLEHTI
Tuulet
muuttuvat,
yhtiö pysyy
kurssissa
Johan
Nurminen
aikansa
oli
rohkea liikemies
ja Jouni
toukokuu
Nyt
Tullauspalvelu
iden
uusi rooli
partnerina strategisena
Työturvallisuusko työskentelevät
rttia hankkimassa tyytyväisimmäs
sä terminaalissa
• Marikin
Обзор статей
asuu kesäkaupungissa
на русском
языке
LOGISTICS
Nurmisen Yhteistyö sujuu
yksiköiden
kesken 4
Miten vietetään
Virossa,
joulua
Venäjällä
ja Ruotsissa?
8
Osaamisen
panostetaan johtamiseen
Nurmisella
10
Nurminen
aloitti itsenäisenä Ship Agency
joulukuussa
12
Anu ja
esimiestyön
Pasi kävi
tit 21
NURMINEN
Nyt
JOHN NURMINEN
KONSERNIN
HENKILÖSTÖLEHTI
NRO 3
LOKAKUU
2007
Lipuu mun
Agentti Esa laiva laituriin
Huotarin
päivä
Suuri kyselynumero6
henkilöstöja lukijatyytyväisyys
Logistiikkake
10–15
skukselle
Vuosaari-hanke
peruskivi
aikataulussa
24
NURMINEN
LOGISTICS
NRO 1 •
OYJ • HENKILÖSTÖLEHTI
maaliskuu
2010
asiakas-,
Nurminen katsoo
itään
Puhetta mallin mukaan
Vesa, Marko,
Luukku
Matti ja
Mika pitävät
talo
on energiatehokas
kelat liikkeessä
• Maanalaiset
Обзор статей
possut
työllistävät
на русском
Nurmista
языке
• Vartiuksessa päivystävät
Ivan ja Mikko
Обзор статей на русском
языке
Marjut,
Bengt ja
muita nurmislaisia
hallituksen
Matit jättivät
• Vainikkalassa
Обзор статей
Vainikka
на русском
языке
The TransRussia trade fair will be held in Moscow from 26 to 29 April
2011. This trade fair, organised for the 16th time, is the biggest logistics
industry event in russia and an esteemed meeting place for logistics
professionals. This year you will find Nurminen Logistics at stand C301
in the expocenter.
The Kuljetus 2011 (Transportation 2011) fair will be organised in Jyväskylä from 19 to 21 May 2011. here, the number of Nurminen Logistics’ stand will be C2-321.
2008
ja Pete
viettävät
TransRussia
KONSERNIN
HENKILÖSTÖLEHTI
2007
Lisäresurssej
Ajoneuvologistiik
a
ka omaksi kehittämiseen
kokonaisuudeksi
NRO 3 •
Interesting trade fairs
OYJ • HENKILÖSTÖLEHTI
joulukuu
Hanna
NRO 4 • joulukuu 2010
JOHN NURMINEN
KONSERNIN
HENKILÖSTÖLEHTI
NURMINEN
ery and equipment could be salvaged. operations resumed very
quickly in temporary premises.
LOGISTICS
NRO 4 •
Katariina
Markku,
On 16 March 2011, a fire, started
by a visitor’s cigarette, destroyed
the office building at Nurminen
Logistics’ Niirala site completely. No injuries were suffered in the
fire. Thanks to the prompt action
by Nurminen Logistics’ personnel and the local fire brigade, the
servers and most of the machin-
JOHN NURMINEN
KONSERNIN
HENKILÖSTÖLEHTI
LOKAKUU
Eero ja
Jukka
A fire in Niirala
Nyt
Vuosaari-hank
etenee nopein
e s. 10
harppauksin
Pietariin
syntyi
OOO John
s. 12
Nurminen
Terminal
Juhlaseminaa
rissa s.
kuultiin nimekkäitä
14
puhujia
Sporttiset
nurmislaiset
pitivät hauskaa
s. 18
Vierumäellä
työn imussa
voittaa Virtasenkin
Nurminen News 1/2011
Mika
keskustelevja Janne
at mielellään
sählätään
Pasilassa
viikoittain
Обзор статей
• Olli kävi
на русском
языке
Siperiassa
JOHN NURMINEN
KONSERNIN
HENKILÖSTÖLEHTI
6
Financial statement
Nurminen Logistics’ year 2010:
Net sales increased,
profitability weakened as expenses increased
F
innish foreign trade recovered during 2010. However, the stevedores’ strike
in March slowed down the
upturn and affected cargo flows
throughout the spring. Nurminen Logistics’ most important market, trade between Finland and the
CIS countries, started to grow only
in the summer 2010 and as a result
the company’s market situation was
more difficult than expected during the beginning of the year. Volume development was positive during the second half of the year, but
profitability was burdened by the
growth of the losses of the logistics
centre in Vuo­saari harbour.
Demand and volumes grew during the year both in rail transport
and in special and heavy transport.
The harbour logistics market remained challenging throughout the
year.
Demand of the forest industry
improved compared to 2009. The
bottom of the demand of mechanical
engineering industry was reached
Nurminen News 1/2011
in the beginning of the year and the
market situation improved in the
end of the year.
Difficult price competition situation improved slightly towards
the end of the year due to volume
growth.
Nurminen Logistics maintained
its position as the market leader in
rail transport from Finland to CIS
countries in 2010, but for example
the export of paper by rail from Finland to CIS countries is still only
50% of the level of 2008 despite the
market recovery.
Market situation is expected to
develop positively in 2011. The outlook of the company’s logistics centre in Vuosaari harbour is better
than in 2010 due to new customer
contracts.
The year in figures
The net sales for the financial period amounted to EUR 69.7 (2009:
62.5) million. Compared to 2009 the
increase of the net sales was 11.5%.
Reported operating result was EUR
Fact box
Nurminen Logistics 2010
• Net sales were EUR 69.7 million
(2009: EUR 62.5 million).
• Reported operating result was
EUR -0.6 million (EUR 2.4
million).
• Operating margin was -0.9%
(3.8%)
• Operating result excluding nonrecurring items was EUR -1.2
million (EUR 0.4 million).
• EBT was EUR -1.1 million (EUR
-0.4 million)
• Net result was EUR -2.0 million
(EUR -0.7 million).
• Earnings per share: -0.22 Euros
(-0.13 Euros).
-618 (2,374) thousand. The decrease
was 126%. Operating result includes non-recurring profits of EUR
533 (1,965) thousand. Therefore,
comparative operating result was
FINaNcIal statEmENt
Net sales, 1,000 Eur
operating result (EbIt), 1,000 Eur
10,000
5,000
8,000
4,000
Net sales by country
The besT solu
Tions
are individua
l
Annual Repo
6,000
4,000
2,000
2,000
1,000
Finland 84.9 %
russia 10.5 %
0
rt 2010
3,000
07
08
09
10
Baltic countries 4.6 %
0
–1,000
07
EUR -1,151 thousand and decreased
381% compared to 2009.
The growth of net sales is based
on the recovery of demand especially during the latter part of the
review period. Especially the rail
transport export from Finland to
CIS countries developed positively from summer onwards. Also the
demand of mechanical engineering
industry’s clientele developed positively in all market segments. The
development was weaker in the
company’s harbour logistics services. In Kotka and Hamina the transit
volumes to CIS countries are still on
a low level. In Vuosaari the volumes
started to grow in the fourth quarter of the review period.
The decrease of operating result
is mainly due to the increase of the
personnel costs and the lease expenses of the Vuosaari logistics centre. The lease of the Vuosaari logistics centre increased according to the
lease agreement by EUR 0.8 million
compared to 2009. In the review period the operating loss of the Vuo-
08
09
More information about
Nurminen Logistics’ year 2010
can be found in the company’s
Annual report 2010. order
the Annual report or read it
on the company’s website at
nurminenlogistics.com.
10
saari logistics centre was EUR 3.4
million. In 2009 the company also
executed temporary lay-offs that decreased the personnel costs of the period of comparison by EUR 1.5 million. Profitability is also burdened by
partly intense price competition.
Outlook
The world economy has started to
grow and the company’s market
outlook is positive. However, there
might be risks in the harbour logistics markets. The company operates in Vuosaari, Kotka and Hamina
harbours and therefore the volume
development of those harbours is
relevant to the company. Volume development is effected, among other
things, by development of the transit trade that decreased during the
recession. Its outlook is unclear at
the moment. Also the railway tariff
changes of different countries might
affect the price competitiveness of
rail transports significantly. In addition, price competition situation
might burden the company’s profit-
ability also in the future if volume
growth of foreign trade does not develop as expected.
The net sales of the company are
expected to increase by approximately 10% in 2011 compared to
2010. The company’s operating result is expected to be slightly better
than in 2010.
The company’s unchanged longterm goal is to increase its net sales
annually by approximately 20% on
average, including acquisitions, and
to reach an operating profit level of
over 7%. The general economic situation is assessed to delay achieving of the growth objectives in the
short term.
The company is actively following the structural changes in the logistics market as well as acquisition
opportunities.
The text of this article is based
on Nurminen Logistics’ financial
statement release 2010 published on
25 February 2011.
Nurminen News 1/2011
7
8
NurmINEN logIstIcs IN russIa
St. Petersburg
Tallinn
Riga
Moscow
Klaipeda
Minsk
Brest
Nurminen News 1/2011
Kiev
MAp: oSMo pÄIVINeN, phoToS: VeIKKo SoMerpuro
NurmINEN logIstIcs IN russIa
9
russia
– what does Nurminen Logistics
do there?
You need only a glance at the world atlas to see
that Russia is a huge market. If you take a closer
look at things, it becomes evident that the market
is also growing. It is also clear that a market of this
type needs and offers an enormous amount of
logistics services. What does Nurminen Logistics
do on such a playing field?
Jekanterinburg
W
hen it comes to
area, Russia is
the largest country in the world,
covering 8% of
the Earth’s total
surface area. The European part of the
country accounts for 40% of the entire
continent, even though a third of Russia belongs to Asia. The country’s population is approximately 142 million.
Due to long distances and poor road
connections, the country is characterised by a strong emphasis on railways.
There are 85,000 kilometres of rail-
ways in Russia, carrying approximately 83% of the country’s freight transport. What is the role of Nurminen
Logistics, a “small” Finnish company,
on this market?
Not as insignificant as one might
think. Finland is the 12th most important country for Russia’s imports and
exports, and for Finland, Russia is absolutely one of the most significant
trading partners. For its part, Nurminen Logistics is the market leader in rail
exports between Finland and the CIS
countries. Nurminen Logistics’ thousand wagons as well as the partners’
Nurminen News 1/2011
A
10
Nurminen Logistics in Russia
wagons it uses are operated by the company’s Russian subsidiary OOO Huolintakeskus which is located in St. Petersburg. Consequently, the company has the
local expertise required on the extremely competitive Russian market. Furthermore, Nurminen Logistics also has
extensive experience accrued through
decades of operations in the country –
the first deliveries to Russia were carried
out as early as in the 1960s. According to
sources with deep insight on Russia, this
type of profound experience of operating
in Russia is a necessity for any company
wishing to succeed there.
Nurminen Logistics’
first deliveries to
Russia were carried
in the 1960s.
Fact box
CIS countries:
• Russia
• Ukraine
• Belarus
• Moldova
• Armenia
• Azerbaijan
• Kazakhstan
• Turkmenistan
• Uzbekistan
• Tajikistan
• Kyrgyzstan
Nurminen News 1/2011
– There are several good arguments
for using Nurminen Logistics’ services in
logistics in Russia. Some are related to
the geographical location of Finland and
some to the company’s own competences,
says Harri Vainikka, Senior Vice President at Nurminen Logistics.
– Finland has a functional logistics infrastructure: ports, roads, railways and
border checkpoints are in good order.
In addition, the country is a safe gateway between Russia and the rest of the
world. On the other hand, Nurminen Logistics is well positioned in the required
transportation hubs in Finland. We operate in the harbours of Helsinki, Kotka and Hamina, and our other terminals
are in central locations near the Russian
border. We are also able to provide efficient logistics solutions through the Baltic countries – after all, our subsidiaries
operate in these countries, too. In addition to our own operations, we can utilise
the support of a wide local partner network in Russia and the CIS countries.
photos: Veikko somerpuro
Nurminen Logistics in Russia
Perfect
chemistry
Kemira is a global, two billion euro
chemical company that is focused on
serving customers in water-intensive
industries. The company offers water quality and quantity management
that improves customers’ energy, water and raw material efficiency.
– Russia is already an important
market for us and its significance increases constantly, says Jari Grönlund, Vice President, Logistics &
Customer Service at Kemira.
Kemira has assigned a part of its
Russian deliveries to Nurminen Logistics whose container wagons and
special tank wagons carry the chemicals from Finland to Russia. According to Grönlund, Russia is not a particularly extraordinary country when it
comes to logistics. Nevertheless, he
emphasises that the chemicals that
Nurminen Logistics transports require
true specialist know-how.
– Transportation of chemicals is
regulated by strict legislation both in
Finland and in Russia, and professional competence is crucial in these
deliveries. All Kemira operations are
based on the “safety first” principle
that is naturally also observed in the
company’s logistics, explains Grönlund.
In addition to professional competence, other aspects of Nurminen Logistics’ services that Grönlund
particularly appreciates are customs
clearance know-how and good relations with Russian railway operators.
– Especially the level of customs
clearance know-how at Nurminen Logistics is such that it is difficult to find
anything similar from competitors.
The competence of the St. Petersburg
office personnel also plays an important role in operations, comments
Grönlund.
Nurminen News 1/2011
11
12
Nurminen Logistics in Russia
Highlights
1
Finland is a functional gateway to Russia.
Finland’s ports, roads and
railways are in order.
2 A long border. Finland and Russia share
a land border of 1,340 kilometres. On the border,
there are nine international border crossing points
as well as seven border
crossing points for Finnish
and Russian citizens.
3 Nurminen Logistics’
sites are in central
locations. The company’s
network covers all central logistics hubs between
Finland and Russia.
Nurminen News 1/2011
Hannu Vuorinen, Senior Vice President responsible for special transport
and project services at Nurminen Logistics, also emphasises the company’s
versatile expertise.
– Our customers definitely benefit
from the fact that we can offer them
the entire logistics chain using mainly our own fleet and terminals. Controllability and reliability of the logistics chain increase when there are not
many players involved, says Vuorinen.
New opportunities through
modernisation
During the past decade, the Russian
economy has grown at an amazing rate.
The gross national product per capita
has doubled, real salaries have tripled
and the number of poor has halved.
However, this development stalled with
the most recent recession, and in 2009,
after ten consecutive years of growth,
the country’s economy shrank by 8%.
In 2010, the growth was less than 4%.
Nevertheless, the outlook for 2011
seems more optimistic, and it is safe to
assume that the current trends in the
logistics industry will gain strength in
the next few years. The most important
of these trends is the modernisation of
infrastructure which is part of a larger process: the general modernisation
of the country’s production and competence structure. The Russian government wants to eliminate the economy’s
dependency on raw materials by diversifying the economy – after all, most
of the country’s export consists of energy products and raw materials with
little or no further processing. In the
future, the aim is to process the country’s assets in the country itself instead
of exporting them abroad for further
processing. This is one of the reasons
Russia wants to double its research
and development expenditure by 2010.
– The modernisation of Russia’s industry and infrastructure is a fact, and
Nurminen Logistics is well prepared
to participate in this process. Modernisation requires many types of logistics
services, and we are able to offer these
services for use in the traffic between
Russia and other countries as well as
within Russia. Be our customer from a
Western country or from Russia, they
During the past
decade, the Russian
economy has grown
at an amazing rate.
can rest assured that we have sufficient
knowledge of both cultures and operating environments. The customers themselves do not necessarily need to possess
such knowledge about Russia or about
operations in the EU member states, for
instance, says Harri Vainikka.
The most common problems perceived in operating on the Russian
market include the lack of predictability in the actions of the country’s authorities. The biggest problems encountered by Finnish companies are related
to varying customs clearance procedures, at least according to an enquiry
carried out by the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs of Finland.
– Problems related to interaction
with authorities or to changes in regulations or surprising situations occur
less frequently the more the company
has experience of the country, the better relations it has with local players
and the better qualifications its personnel have. At Nurminen Logistics, these
things are in order, Vuorinen goes on to
say.
So, size does not matter. Even a relatively small player can be efficient and
reliable, no matter what size the market is.
The website of the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs of Finland was used
as a source for this article.
Nurminen Logistics in Russia
13
Photo: Valtteri Korpinen
Matti Vääränen has taken care of job assignments in Russia since the 1970s.
Five decades of experience with Russia
Nurminen Logistics was the first European company to start regular road
transport to the Soviet Union in 1969.
At that time the route ran from Helsinki
via Leningrad to Moscow. However,
the company had had one truck transporting eggs to the Soviet Union since
as early as 1963. Special transport
driver Matti Vääränen has made deliveries to the Soviet Union and Russia
since the mid-1970s. At that time, foreign vehicles were a rare sight on Soviet roads.
– I attracted a lot of attention with
my truck. In the morning a commuter
bus would sometimes stop next to my
parked truck just to let people admire
the truck and enquire where I come
from, reminisces Matti.
Matti’s first assignment in the Soviet
Union was to deliver building site barracks to Leningrad, but thereafter he
has made various deliveries to almost
all parts of Russia and the former Soviet Union. He has not kept count of
the number of assignments or kilometres driven but particularly in the 1980s
there were many.
– The longest trip lasted for over a
month. At that time there were no cell
phones, so keeping in touch with people in Finland was extremely difficult –
you could only make a 1-minute phone
call and only from Moscow. Nowadays
everything is much easier, comments
Matti.
On his numerous journeys, Matti
has witnessed Russia’s changes from
up close.
– I happened to be in Moscow at the
time of the 1991 coup attempt. I cannot
deny being a bit afraid when the tanks
swarmed the city centre. When the Soviet Union fell apart later on, I was on an
assignment in Belarus. It felt like everything had changed overnight; all the paper work related to the assignment had
to be redone before I was able to return
home, says the seasoned driver, retiring
in May 2011, describing some colourful
incidents along his long career.
Nurminen News 1/2011
Centrefold map
A map of Europe and
the CIS countries for your reference.
Vartius
Jyväskylä
Niirala
Imatra
Rauma
Luumäki
Turku Vantaa
Vainikkala
Vaalimaa
Hamina
Helsinki Kotka
Nurminen Logistics’ terminal
Nurminen Logistics’ site
St. Petersburg
Tallinn
Riga
Yekaterinburg
Moscow
Klaipeda
Novosibirsk
Minsk
Irkutsk
Brest
Astana
Kiev
Ulanbaatar
Rostov
Almaty
Bishkek
Baku
Tashkent
Ashgabat
www.nurminenlogistics.com
Dushanbe
Vladivostok
16
oN tHE job
For timo, the truck is both a home and a workplace
1
The special transport driver Timo
Pelto has used his current truck
for a couple of years. For him,
the 2005 model Volvo is not only
a tool but also a home away from home.
According to Timo, drivers often become
fond of their trucks as Nurminen usually
gives each driver a dedicated truck.
Nurminen News 1/2011
2
Timo’s truck is well equipped: it features a fridge, a coffee maker and
a microwave oven. heating and air
conditioning are fully functional even
when the truck is parked. The “room” height is
just sufficient for Timo, who is 1m 87 (6ft 2ins), to
stand up straight. Timo uses the lower bunk as
his bed and the upper bunk as a storage space.
3
Timo mainly drives
in Germany, which
means that each
year he spends a
lot of days on board a ship. In
addition, he has a fair amount
of free time on jobs as in Germany special transports are
On the job
17
Fact box
only allowed from Monday
evening to Friday morning.
Timo spends his free time
sightseeing in the destination
cities. While abroad, Timo also devotes time for photography which is one of his favourite hobbies at home, too.
4 Timo says that he usually leaves the truck as soon
as he has pulled the handbrake on. So, between driving stages the only time he spends in
the truck is at night. Usually he stays
overnight at service stations and sometimes in loading or unloading locations.
5 All 12 of Nurminen’s trucks have
a vehicle terminal device through
which traffic operators communicate assignments to drivers. Drivers for their part use the vehicle terminal devices to report their progress to traffic operators in
real time. The vehicle terminal devices are also
used for monitoring drivers’ working hours.
Nurminen News 1/2011
Veikko somerpuro
The special transport driver Timo
Pelto, 45, has worked for Nurminen for three years. He does
not clock up a great deal of kilometres per year, approximately 80,000, as driving to Germany includes a lot of time spent on
board a ship. Timo claims to be
the fastest driver at Nurminen as
he reached 302 km/h (188 mph)
driving a motorcycle. In addition
to motorcycling, Timo’s hobbies
include photography. He enjoys
his work for the variety and freedom it offers.
Charging the batteries
Nurminen News 1/2011
Photos: Veikko Somerpuro
18
Charging the batteries
From a ball girl to a bowler
Tiina Åhrlund, currently working as a forwarder at Nurminen’s
Vuosaari office, was not inspired by bowling as a child but
nowadays she bowls in the same association as her mother.
When did you start bowling?
I joined the Fenix bowling association in 2009. My parents bowled
when I was a little girl and I was
given a ball of my own when I was
around 10 years old. At that time,
not many children were bowling and
I found the attention that I received
at the bowling alley rather embarrassing. So, I concentrated mainly on earning some spending money by washing my father’s bowling
ball. However, now as an adult I
have become absorbed in the sport
and I finally joined the same association as my mother. The nice thing
about bowling is that you can begin
it quite young – I think the youngest bowlers are about five years old
– and you can continue for as long
as you are able to hold the ball.
Does a bowling ball really need
washing? Why on earth?
A ball collects grease from the lane
and that is why it needs an occasional wash. Some people even take
their bowling balls to the sauna,
where the grease comes out especially well as the ball “sweats” it out!
Bowling seems a very monotonous activity. Do you ever get
bored?
Absolutely not! At least when you
are playing at the level that I do,
there are never two identical rolls
in a row, even if the score is the
same. And this is what makes this
ing, we roll the ball and hone our
technique. As there are more experienced bowlers in the group, it is
easy to ask for advice and development suggestions – particularly
when you are a beginner. There are
approximately 30 members in our
association and the weekly training
session normally attracts around a
dozen bowlers.
Harder than it looks. A successful roll
requires concentration.
sport challenging and not at all
boring.
What makes a roll successful?
Everything has to fall into place: the
posture, the hand position, the correct roll rhythm and naturally concentration. First and foremost the
sport requires the ability to exclude
everything around you and to concentrate on what you’re doing. If one
of these elements is not in place, a
spare is needed. Sometimes success
is not just a question of skill but also a pinch of luck.
So why is an association needed
in this type of individual sport?
Even though the actual performance is carried out individually, it is
nice to train in a group. When train-
In addition to training, what
else does the sport involve?
Competing is a part of bowling, just
like in other sports. My ranking is
D, which means I am still a beginner. Bowling in a competition differs
from bowling in a training session,
amongst other things, for the lanes
are freshly maintained and bowling
feels quite different to what we are
used to in training. Keeping track of
the scores of others with the same
ranking also motivates you to try
even harder. Competitions may take
3 to 4 hours, so by the end my 7-kilo bowling ball starts to feel quite
heavy.
So, you bowl in the same association as your mother. Is there
fierce competition between you?
Not at all. Sometimes it feels that
I compete more against my mother
than she does against me. Although
my mother is a skilful bowler and
holds a higher ranking than me, she
doesn’t always win competitions between us!
Nurminen News 1/2011
19
20
NEW tasKs
artur is the general director of ooo Huolintakeskus
Artur Poltavtsev
general director, ooo Huolintakeskus
You accepted the position of General Director of Nurminen’s
subsidiary OOO Huolintakeskus at the beginning of February this year. What are your feelings at the moment?
Thank you, I like the new tasks. I had already previously worked
as Vice General Director of huolintakeskus for years, so I am
familiar with the matters and people here. The only thing that
has surprised me is the kind of bureaucracy, i.e. the amount
of documents to be signed and stamped, and you have to remember that I am russian after all. I have lived in Finland
since 1998 except for a few years spent in Moscow, and I
had already gotten used to the local habit that not every document needs to be verified with the manager’s signature.
What does the OOO Huolintakeskus do?
We operate both Nurminen’s own train wagons and those of
the company’s business partners. The traffic management
in Finland is also currently carried out from the office in
St. petersburg. In addition, we have a few russian clients
whose forwarding, freight and storage operations we take
care of. our team is comprised of a little over 30 professionals who have strong experience in russian rail transport.
What do the Os in the company’s name stand for?
The three os come from the words “obshestvo s
ogranichennoi otvetstvennostju”, which in english refers to a limited liability company.
Nurminen News 1/2011
J.KILpeLÄINeN
Both your sons were born in Finland. Do
you intend to keep up your sons’ Finnish skills in St. Petersburg, too?
Absolutely. our older son is five
years old and solely for this reason
we have reserved him a place
in the Finnish day care centre
in St. petersburg. our younger son is only under one year
old, so he does not go to
day care yet.
NEW tasKs
NurMINeN LoGISTICS
Before you came to Nurminen, you were working in the
same role through a staffing agency. Why did you want
to transfer to Nurminen?
I’d worked at Nurminen’s Vuosaari terminal for almost a
year through a staffing agency. I wanted to transfer to Nurminen so that I wouldn’t have to change my place of work
whenever it was deemed necessary.
Niko Tirronen
terminal worker, Vuosaari
What do you do at Nurminen?
I work at the railway terminal, which right now means loading and unloading paper. I like the job: I can work independently, the terminal is heated and the tools are good, including the forklift truck. My colleagues and supervisors are
great, too!
NurMINeN LoGISTICS
You started with Nurminen as a forwarder at the beginning of March. Have you worked in similar duties elsewhere?
I have worked as a forwarder since 1999 at various companies. My duties have been very varied, even though my title
has remained the same.
Have you worked outside of Turku?
Yes, I’ve only lived here for the past five years. Before that, I
worked in Kotka and hamina.
Tiina Mäkelä
forwarder, turku
What is the best thing about your job?
I simply like this job – compiling documents is a job with a
wide variety of tasks and you always learn new things. I’m
also happy about my working hours and great colleagues.
V.SoMerpuro
You have worked as a sales assistant at Nurminen
since 2008. What made you come back to forwarding?
I came to Nurminen years ago from another company
where I worked in forwarding. When it turned out at the beginning of the year that I could move in on a new position
within the Vuosaari office I was happy to take the opportunity. Change is refreshing.
Have things changed in forwarding during this period?
electronic customs clearance was new to me and it took
some effort to learn the new related systems.
Vera Nyman
Export Forwarder, Vuosaari
Other new
Nurminen
employees
ella Doroshenko
Forwarder
St. petersburg
ekaterina Golovan
Forwarder
St. petersburg
Tero Isotalo
Measurer/Forwarder
Imatra
pia-Stina Kork
Forwarder
Vuosaari
Marko Metsikkö
Terminal worker
Vuosaari
pekka Mitjonen
Accountant
pasila
Tero Moilanen
Section Manager
Vuosaari
Markku Nieminen
Measurer/Forwarder
Imatra
Vesa Sassi
Terminal worker
Vuosaari
Natalia Shcherbina
Forwarder
Niirala
Does the forwarder’s work at Vuosaari differ from forwarding work at any other Nurminen office?
At the offices located in Vuosaari and other harbours the
work is naturally related to sea traffic, while the offices by
the eastern border are focused on rail traffic. I don’t think
there are any other major differences.
Nurminen News 1/2011
21
In the same boat
photos: Veikko Somerpuro
22
Customer contact person. Nina
Sirén serves Customs customers
at the Vuosaari harbour.
Nurminen News 1/2011
In the same boat
Foreign trade runs
smoothly in compliance
with regulations
Finnish Customs is a significant partner for Nurminen Logistics.
Cooperation is carried out at many levels. One of Nurminen
Logistics’ contact persons is Nina Sirén, who works as a customer
contact person at the marine customs at the Vuosaari harbour.
I
n February 1812, a central
customs agency, the General Customs Directorate, was
established in Finland as the
Russian emperor Alexander I
approved the regulation for customs
administration of the Finnish
Grand Duchy. However, customs
duties have been collected in Finland since the 13th century, so this
is by no means a recent phenomenon in our country. It has been a
long journey to the current situation, in which Finland is a member
of the European Union and customs
clearance is carried out mostly electronically. Currently the operating
environment of Finnish Customs is
defined by Finland’s land borders
with Norway and Russia as well as
the Finno-Russian sea border on
the Gulf of Finland as these borders
are also outer borders of the European Union. Finnish harbours and
airports are the EU’s outer borders,
too – after all, they serve third countries’ traffic as well.
One of the most important tasks
for Customs is to facilitate foreign
trade. Customs takes care that the
flow of goods runs in a controlled
way to and from Finland and looks
after the compliance with requirements of the European Union and
national legislation in customs
clearance. This is the principal reason for Nurminen Logistics’ close cooperation with Customs all around
Finland. At the marine customs at
the Vuosaari harbour, one of Nur-
minen Logistics’ contact persons is
customer contact person Nina Sirén.
– Nurminen Logistics is a member of our key customer group. The
companies in this group carry out
various activities that require authorisation, such as bonding and
transit. At the Vuosaari harbour, I
advise Nurminen Logistics in matters related to security data and
Nurminen News 1/2011
23
24
”
IN tHE samE boat
What
motivates me
in my job is
that our work
has social
significance.
NINA SIrÉN
warehousing, for instance. In practice we communicate weekly, when
necessary, and Customs also organises regular meetings with companies. In these meetings, we can discuss outlook for the longer term as
well as any wishes with regard to
the development of cooperation, explains Sirén.
Nurminen Logistics is a familiar
partner for Customs throughout the
country; after all, the company operates in all Finnish customs districts excluding the Åland Customs
District.
– We have been a pilot company in many reforms carried out by
Customs. The latest major cooperation project was the application for
the AEOF status granted by Customs, says Mika Eloranta, Regional Manager at Nurminen Logistics.
– Here in Vuosaari a distinctive
feature in all operations is the fact
that the harbour is new. All parties
in this harbour started their operations here simultaneously at the
end of 2008. Consequently, it was a
new operating environment for everyone, and for this reason in particular it has been extremely fortunate
that we have had a single dedicated contact person at Customs, ready
to answer any questions we might
have with regard to marine cus-
Nurminen News 1/2011
Over 20 years of work at Customs. Nina Sirén is one of the long-time Customs
employees.
toms, continues Eloranta who also
works at the Vuosaari harbour.
Nothing is as constant as change
The inauguration of the Vuosaari
harbour has been one milestone
in Nina Sirén’s career at Customs,
but her 22-year career has included
many other changes, too.
– In fact, one could say that
change is not an exception but a
permanent state. I started working
at the West Harbour in 1989 and I
also worked for a couple of years in
Sompasaari before transferring to
the Vuosaari harbour around the
time it was inaugurated, says Nina.
– It was very challenging to get
operations started in Vuosaari without interruptions. Other significant
changes during my career have been
electronic customs declarations and
the changes brought by joining the
European Union. Another thing is
our organisational changes which
also seem to be a permanent fact.
For instance, we are currently making preparations for combining customs districts. The plan is to carry
this out next year.
In addition to electronic customs
clearance, another typical feature in
Customs’ operations is mobility.
– As we do not have a lot of resources, the employees change location according to local personnel needs. Supervisory personnel
do not work in only one place but
in an extensive geographical area.
For instance, the operating area of
IN tHE samE boat
Fact box
Finnish customs
• Contributes to ensuring
undisturbed operation of the
internal market of the eu.
• Facilitates international goods
trade and ensures compliance
with provisions.
• Collects the duties, taxes and
charges on foreign trade and on
the production of goods correctly
• Combats customs crime and
threats to health and safety as
well as to the economic interests
of Finland and the eu.
the marine customs of the Southern
Customs District covers the region
from Inkoo to Loviisa.
Nina, as well as many other Customs employees, has enjoyed her
work and stayed with the same employer for a long time. The meaningfulness of work comes not only from
a good atmosphere but also from career advancement opportunities.
– In the beginning I worked at
the customs clearance office handling customs clearance, after which
I have had the chance to take part
in many different tasks. Before my
current position, I participated in
establishing a quality assurance
group for the marine customs, for
instance. What motivates me in my
job is that our work has social significance. Smoothly running foreign
trade and our various security-related operations are not trivial matters. One should not forget either
that Customs still collects approximately 28% of the state’s tax revenue, explains Nina.
The significance of the tasks mentioned above is surely a sign that
the long history of Customs will be
followed by at least as long a future.
HIgHlIgHts
1
Cooperation at many levels. Mika Eloranta, regional Manager at Nurminen Logistics, is a member of the Finnish Freight Forwarders’ Association’s customs cooperation group that also includes representatives from the
National Board of Customs. Department Manager Anu Ravi-Nurmela is a
member of the customer cooperation group in the eastern Customs District.
Department Manager Katariina Kosonen is Nurminen Logistics’ representative in the forwarding customer cooperation group of the Southern Customs
District.
2
Praiseworthy work. Seija Hummelin-Uusilehto, Department Manager at Nurminen Logistics Turku, was awarded a certificate of honour by
the World Customs organization on International Customs Day, 26 January
2011. hummelin-uusilehto has been involved in the activities of Turun huolinta- ja Laivanselvitysliikkeiden Yhdistys (an association of freight forwarders and
clearance companies in the Turku region) for years. In this role, she has organised several training events each year in cooperation with Customs.
3
The customer reaps the benefits. Smooth cooperation between Nurminen Logistics and Customs generates benefits first and foremost for
Nurminen Logistics’ customers. As customs clearance know-how is kept up to
date, the customers can be sure that all activities related to their assignments
will be carried out appropriately from the point of view of Customs.
Nurminen News 1/2011
25
26
rEFErENcEs
phoTo: SAKArI LeppIAho
mantsinen group ltd oy
The Mantsinen Group Ltd Oy located in North Karelia near Joensuu manufactures material handling machinery
and harbour cranes. The machines in the company’s selection range in weight from 50 tons to over 200 tons. The
machines are exported all around the world and Nurminen Logistics has provided Mantsinen with transportation
services for several years. The machines are transported east via rail tracks and via roads to europe, for example.
” ”
According to the client:
According to Nurminen:
We offer our products to our clients according to the turnkey principle, and we also want to purchase our own logistics services according to the same principle. For this
reason, we favour suppliers who can offer us comprehensive services, all forms of transportation as well as
documents related to the transports all from the same
counter. I also appreciate that Nurminen has acquainted itself with our products. even though each product is
unique in its own way, long-term collaboration benefits
us both in this regard.
Mikko Mantsinen
Transport Manager
Mantsinen Group Ltd oy
Collaboration with Mantsinen is interesting because it is an innovative company
that tailors the machines it manufactures
according to each client’s needs. For this
reason, we as well have to plan our transportation methods and equipment to correspond to each machine. Nurminen’s versatile equipment both on rail and road plays
a crucial role here.
Sakari Leppiaho
Sales Manager
Nurminen Logistics plc
Read more references: www.nurminenlogistics.com
Nurminen News 1/2011
Big or small. Near or far.
Join us at TransRussia in Moscow
26–29 April and at Kuljetus 2001 fair
in Jyväskylä 19–21 May!
TransRussia is the largest international transport event in Russia and its
neighbouring countries. In 2010 it had 506 exhibitors from 32 countries.
Remember to visit Nurminen Logistics’ stand C301 (Pavilion 2,3).
More information about the event can be found at www.transrussia.ru.
The Kuljetus 2011 (Transportation 2011) fair will be organised in Jyväskylä from
19 to 21 May 2011. Here, the number of Nurminen Logistics’ stand will be C2-321.
More information about the event can be found at www.jklpaviljonki.fi/kuljetus2011.
See you in Moscow and Jyväskylä!
Nurminen Logistics provides high-quality logistics services, such as railway transports, terminal services, forwarding and special
and heavy transports. The company has collected logistics know-how from three centuries, starting in 1886. Nurminen Logistics’
main market areas are Finland, the Baltic Sea region, Russia and other Eastern European countries. The company’s share is listed on
NASDAQ OMX Helsinki.
Nurminen Logistics’ stakeholder magazine
Editor-in-Chief: Niina Haasola. Editor: Laura Jokinen (on maternity leave). Editorial Board: Niina Haasola, Laura Jokinen, Harri Vainikka, Hannu Vuorinen
and Olli Väätäinen. Texts: Niina Haasola. Layout: Indicio Oy. Cover picture: Osmo Päivinen. Printed by Libris Oy. ISSN 1797-8963.
Headquarters
Pasilankatu 2, P.O. Box 124
FI-00241 Helsinki
Finland
Tel. +358 10 545 00
Fax +358 10 545 2000
info@nurminenlogistics.com
www.nurminenlogistics.com