Getting bigger and more competitive

Mapei has come a long way in Norway. After taking over a company called Rescon based in Sagstua (approximately 100 km from Oslo) in 1999, the Group ended up building its fifth biggest manufacturing plant here. A brand-new production unit primarily for manufacturing products in powder form (adhesives, levelling/smoothing compounds) and new facilities for storing finished products and raw materials officially opened on 1^st October. The Group’s Norwegian subsidiary was initially primarily involved in supplying thermo-setting plastics, special cementitious mortars and admixtures for concrete, but now the plant in Sagstua mainly manufactures materials for most Mapei product lines, ranging from solutions for the building industry to cementitious and resin floors, products for installing ceramics, waterproofing agents and cement additives, as well as products for underground constructions.

The Sagstua plant is also the home of the headquarters of Mapei Nordic & Baltic and of a Research & Development laboratory that opened in October 2007. A training centre also opened here in 2015, which allows the Norwegian subsidiary to carry out intensive training work for Mapei clients and partners in all Nordic and Baltic nations.

Sagstua has always been the main base and launchpad for all Mapei operations in northern European countries, such as Sweden, Iceland, Denmark, Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania that host Group distributors and subsidiaries. The Group’s subsidiaries in Scandinavia officially changed name in October 2011 to fall in line with the Group’s official brand, so Rescon Mapei AS was renamed Mapei AS. Some enviable targets have been achieved by this subsidiary over 40 years’ growth: firstly, in sales (revenue in 2018 reached 95 million Euros); in the number of staff (the company now employs 250 staff); and, since October, with its new cutting-edge manufacturing plant constructed using eco-sustainable technology.

GREAT CELEBRATIONS

The Mapei AS plant in Sagstua has been extended by approximately 8000 m² to cover an overall area of 24,000 m² thanks to an investment of approximately 19 million Euros. Extension work lasted almost 2 years and resulted in the construction of two storage facilities and a manufacturing plant for materials in powder form complete with a 45 m-tall tower holding silos. Manufacturing operations carried out here can claim to have reduced environmental impact and energy is generated by means of a geothermal system exploiting heat from under the ground. The products manufactured here do not just supply the Norwegian market, they are also exported to Nordic and Baltic countries.

The completion of these operations deserved to be celebrated in the appropriate way and Mapei AS did so in style, inviting approximately 300 guests, including customers, staff, journalists and authorities, to join in the celebrations on the afternoon of 1^st October. The plant in Sagstua, which was honoured with a Royal visit by King Harald V and Queen Sonja of Norway in July 2017, was this year treated to a visit from Erna Solberg, the current Prime Minister of Norway, underlining the importance of the new Mapei AS manufacturing plant.

Guests arrived at the Sagstua plant around 12 o’clock and were greeted by female members of Mapei AS staff, all wearing traditional dress from the area they come from. A showroom displaying Mapei products and systems was set up in the new raw materials storage facility, where a buffet lunch was served before beginning the guided tour of the plant.

The Prime Minister, Erna Solberg, and Alberto Colella, the Italian Ambassador to Norway, arrived around 2 p.m. and were greeted by Trond Hagerud, General Manager of Mapei AS and head of the Group’s operations in Nordic and Baltic countries. These very special guests also visited the plant along with a group of journalists and some young people doing internships at the Norwegian subsidiary. Everybody was then entertained with music by a violinist and young singer from our local area.

IIt was then time for the official speeches starting with Trond Hagerud, who, after thanking all the guests and authorities for coming, told everybody how incredibly proud he was of what this plant had achieved and Mapei’s growth throughout the whole of northern Europe. The plant manager, Jan Roger, then gave a brief overview of the extension work and outlined certain specifics about its operating.

The Prime Minister said she was really impressed with the new plant: “It is always exciting when a new production unit opens in Norway. It proves that Norwegian business and industry are competitive. And the most remarkable fact is that Mapei is a foreign company that could have located its plant anywhere but chose here because of the expertise and efficiency it found in this area”. Lise Selnes, the Mayor of the Nord Odal City Council where the headquarters of Mapei AS is located, pointed out that the plant extension came about partly thanks to the great working partnership between Mapei and local authorities, who did everything possible to ensure this area was chosen to host the Group’s new manufacturing plant in northern Europe. “In many places a City Council is seen as a hindrance to business, but here we are considered to be a factor in success”, so the Mayor went on to say. “I’m extremely proud because we did everything possible for the company right from the very first day. The City Council has been working in close cooperation with Mapei since 1999 and when it discovered that the Group might build its new manufacturing plant here, it took all the necessary measures to make it happen".

Next to speak were representatives of a corporate client, Granitt og Betongvare, and a supplier, Norcem, who emphasised the fact that Mapei AS is part of a supply chain based on a close working relationship between several companies guaranteeing efficiency and success for everybody involved. Guests were then invited to watch the symbolic start of the new manufacturing plant by Jan Roger, before Trond Hagerud drew the ceremony to a close and thanked everybody for taking part.