The favourable position of Sunila, at the end of a log-floating route and next to Kotka harbour, made it attractive to industry. The Sunila company was founded in 1928 jointly by five major firms in the wood processing industry. The company bought the sawmill and surrounding land and closed down the old mill. The property was kept in reserve during the recession at the turn of the decade. The mid-thirties saw an economical boom, and this time the most expansive sector was the pulp and paper industry. Thus, in 1936, it was decided to build a sulphate cellulose mill on the island of Pyötinen in Sunila. Matters progressed swiftly, and that same year construction of the road, railroad and bridge connections to the island began. The construction of the workers‘ residential area began in 1937 and pulp production started in 1938.
As a result of all this, the contrast between Sunila, as a world-famous work of Alvar Aalto, and its local reputation has become rather marked.
