life
HEAVY CUSTOMER MAGAZINE 1/2015
LIFTED BY WIND POWER ST PETERSBURG OFFICE OPENED
Hello! This is the first ever Heavy Life magazine. I am glad that you’ve gotten hold of it. This autumn has been a historical time for the Silvasti transport company, as we got the chance to acquire my father’s old company, Nurminen Logistics Heavy, and make it part of Transport Company Ville Silvasti once again. Nurminen Logistics Heavy has now been renamed Silvasti Heavy and will operate in close cooperation with Silvasti as one of its subsidiaries. As a result we now have a team consisting of the best special transport professionals in Finland. Currently our company is approximately 50 people strong. One of Silvasti’s greatest strengths is the unique camaraderie that has formed among our employees. I think it is important for our employees to have some experience in all the tasks that we do here at Silvasti. This way everyone maintains a clear view of the big picture. I myself started this job as a special transport truck driver, and have a great deal of appreciation for the work of our drivers and other employees. Silvasti is facing new challenges. Similarly the special transport and project logistics sector is undergoing constant changes. There is ongoing pressure from the market for lower prices and tighter and more flexible schedules. I am thrilled that our newly expanded capacity and the resulting ability to combine jobs and our range of services allows us to meet these challenges head on. Thanks to the merger we have also gained professionals specialising in the planning and realisation of even the most demanding transports and transport projects. As an example, just this year we completed the transportation and installation of four 100 tonne transformers from the Netherlands to northern Sweden, and shipped a sensitive water slide construction to be installed on an ocean cruiser from Finland to a port in the Bahamas. If it didn’t before, it certainly bears saying now that Silvasti can carry out any and all transport jobs in a high-quality and economical manner. Here at Silvasti we have never been in the habit of bemoaning things like the current state of the economy; instead we have focused on staying one step ahead of the competition and one step closer to the customers. I am proud of our development thus far, and look forward to seeing what our new team can achieve together in the future. Ville Silvasti, Managing Director
Editorial board: Mikko Ruohoranta, Transport Company Ville Silvasti Ltd Susanna Mäkinen and Mervi Leinonen Jooli markkinointi & viestintä Oy Graphics & production: Heidi Ruotanen Graphics (page 8-9): Matti Dahlgren Printed by: Kirjapaino Kari Ky
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Transport Company Ville Silvasti Ltd Kiviniementie 40, 41290 Kangashäkki, Finland www.silvasti.com tel: +358 42 453 41 email: info@silvasti.com
LIFTED BY WIND POWER When the family-owned Transport Company Ville Silvasti was founded in 2002, there were no grand visions for the future. Things started to develop at their own pace, but soon enough it became clear that the company’s future lay in international special transports. Today Silvasti is among the top special transport companies in the Nordic countries and is investing heavily in the further development of its services.
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ay of e everyd e saw th any. e boy Vill is father’s comp tl lit a s A h rtation at transpo
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AFTER graduation Ville Silvasti soon found employment as a wage worker, but the desire for a company of his own was already growing in the background. “My father Jukka informed me about a transport company for sale in Ostrobothnia, and in November 2002 I decided to go for it. With the sale we got ourselves 2 tractor units, a few trailers and 2 drivers. We decided to continue the company’s operations, so initially we focused on the transport of excavation machinery and crushing stations. At first the company was primarily run by Kimmo Sarvikas, who still works for us today, since back then I was still employed elsewhere. After a year, however, I was able to shift my focus fully to my own company. My wife Hanna was studying financial administration at the time and started to take care of the company’s office work in between her studies.” Operations soon expanded to industrial transportation, a field that the company began to strongly develop. Another area where the company sought to establish itself early on was international transport. This led to the establishment of the auxiliary firm name Silvasti Logistics for the purpose of managing transports between Finland and continental Europe,
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neatly dividing the company between domestic and international transports. “Now we are all operating under the same Silvasti name, handling both smaller individual special transports as well as extensive international transport projects.”
”We were among the first companies to offer wind power logistics services.” Larger and more demanding projects According to Silvasti, one of the most important factors behind the company’s development has been the early focus on wind power logistics. “We were among the first companies to offer wind power logistics services, and even now a large share of our revenue in Finland and the Nordic countries comes from this sector. Over the years we have expanded from individual transports to large projects. Now we can book entire ships for our clients and organise absolutely everything related to transport.”
Silvasti’s operations have expanded in other ways as well, with a strong focus on large transport projects requiring extensive planning and reporting. The company’s operations have also increasingly begun to focus on international transport. To meet these challenges the company currently employs 6 transportation engineers who specialise in arranging demanding transportations. “We value all transport projects, both large and small, now and in the future. This is something I want to particularly emphasise,” says Silvasti. “We still carry out a large number of smaller transports, but on the other hand we have also reached the very top, the ’WRC series of the transportation industry.’ Our aim is to carry out all transports as well as we possibly can.”
Combining forces to become even stronger Following the acquisition of Nurminen Logistics Heavy Oy, Silvasti’s capacity and expertise for large international projects has grown significantly. “We are continuously developing our operations with the aim of being a pioneer in our field. Together
we can offer a more comprehensive range of services for the current clients of both companies,” says Silvasti. Development Manager Hannu Vuorinen, who joined the company as a result of the Nurminen acquisition, sees interesting things ahead for the company. “Nurminen has decades of experience in special transports and large-scale transport projects to Russia and other former Soviet countries. Now we can offer this expertise to an even wider customer base. Our presence in the Russian market is further strengthened by Silvasti’s new offices in St. Petersburg, which were opened right after the acquisition.” Another major area of expertise added to the company as a result of the Nurminen acquisition is the organisation of special transports between Finland and European countries without risky freight transfers, which often result in additional costs. The method is based on shipping special transport trailers without a truck tractor and utilising partner networks to operate in the target countries. “The increased volume resulting from the merger allows for even more cost-effective operation, which will benefit our clients in the future,” says Vuorinen.
Balancing work with rally and exercise In his work, Silvasti rarely has the time to take the wheel himself anymore. Sometimes he hops on for some of the more demanding transports, but his current job consists mainly of managing the company. In his spare time he likes to get some daily exercise in, be it by jogging, swimming or skiing. However, motor vehicles are ever close to his heart – especially those of the rally variety. In this field Ville’s interest lies primarily in historic rally, and he drives a few select races annually in the European Historic Sporting Rally Championship series. His latest memorable experience is from the Tour de Corse Historique 2015 raced in Corsica in October, where he managed to finish in the top 30 out of 170 starting cars despite suffering a flat tyre. When it comes to his company, Silvasti puts his trust in his capable employees. “I think it’s important to give a lot of responsibility to employees. I’ve found it to be a good habit, and employees are also motivated by the fact that they are allowed to make even big decisions independently. I’m also very pleased how well everything has gone with the personnel of Silvasti Heavy so far, with many people praising the freedom of work they’ve found in our family-owned company. This is a good foundation for us to build upon.”
The importance of recognizing risks Everyday operation in the field of special transport is varied and sometimes even a little bit exciting. Assignments are challenging and always different, requiring the ability to look at the bigger picture and make quick decisions. “I think my own greatest strength is a good tolerance for pressure. You can’t let the little things get to you, and the main thing is to make everything work as well as possible under the circumstances you find yourself in,” says Silvasti. Silvasti strives for absolute perfection in all projects. “Now I’ve come to put things more into perspective. For me, perfection now means adapting in order to achieve the best possible outcome even if you run into some changes along the way.”
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YEAR 2015
HARD WORK, GROWTH AND CAUSE TO CELEBRATE
The most memorable project this year: transport of fuel oil tanks from Vaasa, Finland to Gävle, Sweden by ferry.
Transport Company Ville Silvasti acquires Nurminen Logistics Heavy
- part of the transport was carried out on public roads - width over 25 m and weight 150 tonnes - transported using two trailers simultaneously
Occupation: hero’ TV series in September 2015
Home town Uurainen awarded Ville and Hanna Silvasti as the Entrepreneurs of the Year
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ESTA Awards 2015 gala Winner in Paris in “Best u the category nder 12 0 ton transpo rt opera ne tion in Euro pe”
SILVASTI IS NEXT YEAR’S REALITY TV STAR Silvasti will be featured in an episode of the Ammattina sankari (‘Occupation: hero’) TV series airing on Nelonen in early 2016. A camera crew immortalised a transport that departed on Monday night on 26 October from the yard of Saarijärven Säiliövalmiste Oy and arrived at its destination at a heating plant in Turku late on the following Tuesday evening.
THE camera also recorded the morning following the transport, when the heating plant’s 17 metre-high container was unloaded from the trailer. The truck was driven by Silvasti’s longest-serving employee, driver Kimmo Sarvikas. “The production team was pleased to be able to also record the unloading, which they are not always permitted to do. In this case our client and their own client had no objections about the recording,” says Sarvikas. The first takes were already shot in early September, when Sales Engineer Juha Simola and Transport Manager Jari Sihvonen were planning the special transport. The production crew recorded different stages of the transport in order to provide a comprehensive view of the work involved. “These things aren’t handled by drivers alone. Proper preparation plays a big role in making sure that the load arrives safely at its destination,” says Sarvikas.
Camera crew astonished by the challenges of special transport The camera crew consisted of a sound technician, an interviewer and a
Driver Kimmo Sarvikas drove Silvasti’s truck confidently during recording – after all, he is not just an everyday hero, but also Silvasti’s longestserving employee.
cameraman who handled the recording with just a small digital camera and a GoPro camera, much to Sarvikas’ surprise. The recording went surprisingly smoothly. The team sat on board Sarvikas’ truck part of the way and also on board the escort vehicle, occasionally driving ahead in order to capture some special shots. “Based on movies I thought that the recording would require large cameras, lights and a big crew,” ponders Sarvikas.
Sales Engineer Juha Simola and Transport Manager Jari Sihvonen were recorded for the Ammattina sankari TV series in September 2015.
According to Sarvikas, the camera crew were in turn surprised by how complicated it is to handle special transports. The height of the load adds to the challenge, potentially making even a short drive take up to three times as much time as normal. “There are portals above the road, traffic signs that need removing and all kinds of other things that you have to consider so that you can safely transport an oversized load. At one point we even had to drive in the wrong direction on the motorway in order to bypass a low bridge. Occasionally we had to slow down to 10 kilometres per hour in order to go under power lines, after which we could speed up again. We had to do this dozens of times between Saarijärvi and Turku, which obviously took some time.” Sarvikas hopes that the Ammattina
sankari TV series will make other drivers more understanding when it comes to special transports. Too many people get angry while driving, shaking their fists or cursing if their trip is interrupted by a special transport. “We didn’t run into anything too bad during recording. One driver did end up swerving off the road to avoid the transport because they didn’t pay heed to the yellow lights of our escort vehicle in time. Often it feels like people are either not taught the meaning of a warning light in driving school or that they’ve simply stopped caring about it. It’s the same thing with obligatory stop signs,” bemoans Sarvikas.
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THE STORY OF A WIND JOAKIM JENSEN OPERATIONS & CHARTERING MANAGER SILVASTI PROJECT GMBH From where does your planning start? My planning starts with a client’s request for a quotation, which includes the client’s information on the shipping: the time and date, the place of loading, the harbour and the recipient’s details. After that we calculate a good price for the job and get things moving.
1 Loading of towers at tower factory.
What are the biggest challenges? Unpredictability: you never know what kind of challenges and surprises each project will present. When you’re operating outside of Finland, getting things done takes a lot of work sometimes. Many things, like acquiring a hot work licence, loading stoppages, congestion of ships and weather conditions all have an impact on transport projects.
2 Tower transport from factory to port.
3 Unloading towers from trucks and re-loading to coaster vessel.
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POWER PROJECT
7 Transport of all components from port to wind farm.
8 Heavy lifting an installation of wind turbines at wind farm construction site.
6 Unloading of sea vessels at Finnish port storaging/warehousing of wind turbine components, loading of components to Silvasti trucks.
4 Tower shipping to Finland.
5 Shipment of blades arriving from overseas to Finnish port.
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FROM THE MOUTH OF A COLLEAGUE LARGE construction sites often require weeks of planning, but Esa and I are able to handle basic transports quickly as routine work. We work well as a team because we have the same sense of humour. We’ve known each other for so long that we almost know what the other one is thinking. My job is to manage and schedule practical work on the road. I plan the routes, contact the police and power and phone companies when needed and take care of all the little details so that transports go as smoothly as possible. In addition to this I’m the lead traffic controller and drive an escort vehicle in transports carried out in Finland, Sweden, Norway and the Baltic countries. My work requires good organisational skills and knowledge of special transport legislation. Social skills are also important as I constantly have to deal with new people in my work, and you have to take other people into consideration in traffic too.
ME and Henrik have been working together for about
ten years now, so our teamwork is very straightforward. If we have something to say, we can give it to each other straight – frankly and honestly. We talk over the phone a lot since I sit in Jyväskylä while Henrik sits in Pori. He’s also on the road a lot, driving the escort vehicles accompanying transports in different parts of the Nordic countries. We handle transport arrangements as a team. My main job is to make sure that our fleet operates as costeffectively as possible on the road. I chain jobs together so that our trucks spend as little time driving without loads as possible. Currently I oversee a total of 10 Silvasti trucks and 25 trailers. In my work being familiar with the equipment is key so that we can offer our clients the best and most costeffective solution for each transport. Once I’ve taken care of all the necessary permits, reserved the ferries and decided which truck, which trailer and which driver or partner to use, it’s Henrik’s time to step in. I’ve noticed that our drivers also trust Henrik’s strong expertise – this kind of mutual trust is especially important on the road. After all, handling a load for a client is a big responsibility. The most motivating thing about my work is seeing the whole team succeed together. Esa Liikanen, Transport Manager
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The most difficult part of my job is reaching the right people so that we can arrange the removal of overhead obstacles on roads, for example. Power companies are particularly challenging in this regard since the person I’m trying to reach is often a subcontractor, as a result of which finding their information is time-consuming. The highlight of my work is seeing goods reach their destination in one piece and the satisfaction of our clients. Henrik Laihanen, Supervisor
EVENTS 2016 SEE YOU AT THE TRADE FAIRS!
WE ARE ATTENDING: The Wind Exchange & Solar event 15.–16. March 2016 in Vaasa, Finland The Breakbulk Europe Exhibition 23.–26. May 2016 in Antwerp, Belgium WindEnergy Hamburg 27.-30. September 2016 in Hamburg, Germany
Come chat with us and see what we have to offer!
NEW ST PETERSBURG OFFICE OPENED SILVASTI has strengthened its
position in the Russian market by opening an office in St Petersburg. The new office will market our services to Russian clients and support the operations of our western European offices in Russia.
Silvasti Heavy Oy Olga Manukhina olga.manukhina@silvasti.com Tel: +7 921 0924567 Ligovsky Prospekt 140 A, office 405 192007 St. Petersburg, Russia
Silvasti’s Russian office is run by Olga Manukhina, who has several years of experience in special transports and projectbased business operations in Russia.
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Transport Company Ville Silvasti Ltd tel: +358 42 453 41 info@silvasti.com www.silvasti.com
Services: Special transportation Project logistics Windpower transportation Hauling & Jacking Route and project planning
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