Ahlstrom plans to establish new Service Center for finance, accounting and customer service operations
Ahlstrom Corporation PRESS RELEASE February 11, 2014 at 9.30
Ahlstrom plans to establish new Service Center for finance, accounting and customer service operations
Ahlstrom, a global high performance fiber-based materials company, plans to establish a new Service Center in Vilnius, Lithuania, to support its businesses in Europe. The new Service Center is planned to manage most of the finance, accounting and customer service operations in EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa). According to the plan, customer service and financial services will be combined from various locations in Europe.
The new setup is expected to bring benefits related to process harmonization, better management of resources, as well as improved collaboration and efficiency. Increasing the cost efficiency is essential for achieving the targeted cost savings of the company's rightsizing program. Ahlstrom's customer service functions in Munich will continue to operate as today.
The targeted cost savings from the reorganization as well as the respective non-recurring items to be booked are included in the EUR 50 million rightsizing program announced in January 2014.
"Customer service and finance operations at Ahlstrom are very fragmented today, since employees are working in small teams across multiple locations. Centralizing EMEA customer service into two main locations, Vilnius and Munich, enables us to offer better customer service. Centralizing financial services into Vilnius will enable business support in a more unified and efficient manner. This approach will also support our rightsizing program," says Sakari Ahdekivi, CFO.
The planned reorganization is expected to affect approximately 60 jobs in Europe. Ahlstrom will initiate the co-operation negotiations with the employees in all affected locations according to the local legislation and practices.
Ahlstrom established a Customer Service Center in North America last year with positive results. Vilnius was chosen as the location due to its existing service center infrastructure and favorable cost base.
For more information, please contact:
Liisa Nyyssönen
Vice President, Communications
Tel. +358 10 888 4757
Ahlstrom in brief
Ahlstrom is a high performance fiber-based materials company, partnering with leading businesses around the world to help them stay ahead. We aim to grow with a product offering for clean and healthy environment. Our materials are used in everyday applications such as filters, medical fabrics, life science and diagnostics, wallcoverings and food packaging. In 2013, Ahlstrom's net sales from the continuing operations amounted to EUR 1 billion. Our 3,500 employees serve customers in 24 countries. Ahlstrom's share is quoted on the NASDAQ OMX Helsinki. More information available at www.ahlstrom.com.