Normet restructures its business in North America

The acquisitions include Normet USA and Rock Tek, Inc./dba Normet America, Inc. Normet USA in Portland, which has been in charge of Normet equipment and service sales, was purchased from its previous owner, Mr Rick Kraft. Rock-Tek, Inc. in Wisconsin, with its branch office in Elko (Nevada), has been in charge of Normet spare parts and LTC business and was taken over from its previous owners, Mr Mike Fine and Mr Brent Green.

The acquisitions are part of the recent reorganization

“These acquisitions are part of the recent reorganization within the entire Normet Group, by which the responsibility for worldwide sales, marketing and customer service operations was moved from Finland to the front line company in Switzerland (Normet International Ltd.), whereas responsibility for manufacturing and administration remain with the supply line company in Finland. Parallel to the development in North America, we have opened regional companies and branch offices in Chile, Australia, China, and Europe,” explains Mr Tom Melbye, Managing Director of Normet International Ltd. and Chief Operating Officer of Normet Group.

“Normet enjoys traditionally a strong presence in North America, and with the recent measures we are concentrating our efforts and bring back the responsibility for Normet’s sales and marketing operations into the company’s own hands. I am sure that the new organization will not only further enhance Normet’s performance, but will bring us much closer to our customers and enable us to respond more quickly to the ever-changing market demands. And we will also be better equipped to offer Normet’s Life Time Care concept with many outstanding features of long-term cooperation with customers,” he continues.

In addition to the regional headquarters in Miami, the North and Latin American markets are covered by offices in Portland (Oregon), Union Grove (Wisconsin), Elko (Nevada) and Santiago (Chile).

Mr Heikki Ulvila, Managing Director of Normet Americas, Inc. says that he is very happy to have the former owner of Normet USA, Rick Kraft, in the team as National Sales Manager, as well as Mike Fine (as Administration and LTC Manager N.A.) and Brent Green (as LTC Manager N.A.), both former owners of Rock Tek, Inc., and that they continue to serve the market as they have done in the past. “All personnel of Rock Tek, Inc./dba Normet America, Inc. and Normet USA are now full-time employees of the Normet Group, and this naturally strengthens our market position considerably,” Heikki Ulvila points out. Rick Kraft is likewise pleased with the new situation: “I have worked with Normet for so many years on my own and have established its machines in the North American market; I am confident that working inside a large company will open up new opportunities for the development of the business”. Also Mike Fine and Brent Green confirmed the advantage of the new situation: “We will clearly benefit from the expertise and the network of an international company.”

Editor’s note.

Normet Group is a Finnish manufacturer of mobile underground equipment used in mining and underground construction. It operates a manufacturing plant in Iisalmi, Finland, with a combined space of 27,500 sqy. The number of employees is over 320, and the company’s annual sales come close to 80 million Euros. Normet’s Chairman of the Board, Mr Aaro Cantell, is the main shareholder with 70% ownership. The remaining 30 % of the company is owned by Normet’s members of Management.

For additional information please contact:

Tom Melbye
Managing Director Normet International Ltd and COO Normet Group
Mobile: +41 79 449 85 55
tom.melbye@normet.fi

Heikki Ulvila
Managing Director Normet Americas, Inc.
Mobile: +358 40 521 33 00
heikki.ulvila@normet.fi