Etteplan Oyj : Kalmar outsources part of its crane engineering operations in China to Etteplan – Etteplan opens its ninth office in China to Taicang

Etteplan press release December 21, 2020 at 8.00

Etteplan and Kalmar, part of Cargotec, have agreed on the outsourcing of part of Kalmar's crane engineering operations in China and the transfer of approximately 70 Kalmar's engineering employees to Etteplan. The deal covers Kalmar's crane engineering operations in Taicang and Shanghai and will become effective on January 1, 2021. Measured by the number of people, the deal is among the largest outsourcing agreements in Etteplan's history and also marks the opening of Etteplan's ninth office in China.

With the planned long-term agreement Kalmar aims to improve the efficiency of its crane engineering operations in China by ensuring scalability and cost competitiveness. Etteplan's service solution for Kalmar is based on predefined processes and efficient operating models. Etteplan will take overall responsibility for producing and developing engineering services for the customer. The productivity of the service model is regularly measured using a set of indicators agreed on together with the customer.

'We are aiming to improve our competitiveness by outsourcing part of the crane engineering operations in China. This is a natural step for us after reorganising our earlier Chinese joint venture last summer. With the support of Etteplan's expert network and global footprint, we will be able to safeguard the scalability of our engineering operations, unify engineering competencies and processes between different products and technical solutions and realise synergies, resulting in better service for our customers,' says Toni Söderlund, Vice President, Products and Solutions, Kalmar.

The outsourcing agreement signed with Kalmar is important to Etteplan as it strengthens our presence in China and creates an even stronger foundation to serve industrial companies and develop business operations in China.
'Measured by the number of people, this is among the largest outsourcing agreements in Etteplan's history and happens in China, which is one of our strategic growth markets. I warmly welcome the some 70 new experts to the Etteplan team. The agreement shows that our outsourcing solutions are effective and it undoubtedly strengthens our market position in China', saysRiku Riikonen, Senior Vice President of Engineering Solutions at Etteplan.

As a consequence of the deal Etteplan will open an office in Taicang, China. The new office brings the number of Chinese cities that Etteplan operates in to nine: Beijing, Shanghai, Kunshan, Suzhou, Taicang, Xi'an, Qingdao, Wuhan, and Shenzhen, their staff totaling over 400 people. Etteplan has been operating in China since 2004 and has continued to invest heavily in the Chinese market.

'We chose Etteplan also due to the fact that our transferring employees will gain a good new employer, global team and excellent opportunities to develop their professional know-how in the field of engineering', Toni Söderlund continues.

Additional information:
Riku Riikonen, Senior Vice President, Engineering Solutions, Etteplan, tel [phone]
Outi Torniainen, Senior Vice President, Marketing and Communications, Etteplan, tel. [phone]
Toni Söderlund, Vice President, Products and Solutions, Kalmar, [e-mail]

Kalmar in brief

Kalmar offers the widest range of cargo handling solutions and services to ports, terminals, distribution centres and to heavy industry. Kalmar is the industry forerunner in terminal automation and in energy efficient container handling, with one in four container movements around the globe being handled by a Kalmar solution. Through its extensive product portfolio, global service network and ability to enable a seamless integration of different terminal processes, Kalmar improves the efficiency of every move.www.kalmarglobal.com

Kalmar is part of Cargotec. Cargotec's (Nasdaq Helsinki: CGCBV) sales in 2019 totalled approximately EUR 3.7 billion and it employs around 12,000 people.www.cargotec.com