While working in the paper machine industry, Kari Koirikivi (left) and Mikko Ilola noticed that the wear and asymmetry of the roll surface were hindering production.
Wintech Oy's roll grinding equipment increases the productivity of paper, cardboard and steel mills. The Jyväskylä-based company is heading for international markets.
"Our company is a micro-enterprise. There can't be a smaller technology company operating in the international market than this," say the company owners. Mikko Ilola ja Kari Koirikivi.
Koirikivi founded Wintech Oy in 2006 with two other partners. The design office and small test workshop of the company, which specializes in roller grinding equipment and service operations, are located in the old industrial environment of the Jyväskylä Rifle Factory.
Keeping rolls round is an essential part of the production process in many industrial plants. If the roll surface is asymmetrical or worn, the product will not be of good quality or the roll will not be able to optimally utilize the pulp needed for paper production, for example.
This is precisely the problem that led to the founding of Wintech. The entrepreneurs have years of experience in maintenance, product development and sales tasks in the paper machine industry in Finland and abroad.
The company has three product lines: equipment installed in roll grinding machines, in-machine equipment installed in paper machines, and service operations. Ilola and Koirikivi consider their patented BarringKiller product to be the company's flagship product.
Many large equipment suppliers in Finland use Wintech's products and services. Entering international markets is demanding and takes time, Ilola and Koirikivi say. However, the company is aiming abroad. So far, sales have been made to Sweden, France, the Netherlands and Hungary, among others.
The full article can be read in Paperi ja Puu magazine, 3/2012.
