Talent Traction pilot program improves TT Gaskets’ HR activities
September 1, 2022
TT Gaskets had the honor of participating in the recent Talent Traction pilot study program. Organized by TAMK and TE Office, the project’s aim was to study the root causes for barriers in hiring internationals in Finland and try to solve those challenges in participating companies.
Johanna Koivulampi-Howard, Key Account Manager at TAMK and Kati Lammi, Consultant at Enterprise and Training Services Team at TE Services opened the Talent Traction seminar. Photo: Riikka Mölkänen
The Talent Traction students learned about practicalities in working life, the Finnish language and service design. There was also a practical training period in companies, where the companies could learn more about their internationalization stage and receive development ideas from the students.
“This project has helped us to understand the importance of considering the cultural background, language and competencies of candidates and employees, so that they can integrate into our company and Finnish working life,” TT Gaskets’ Human Resources Specialist Sanni Kraneis says.
Student Annika Oravecz did her training at TT Gaskets and praises the practical approach of the education. The education offered her a chance to learn about Finnish work life, offered an opportunity for networking and gave concrete tools for finding a job in Finland.
At TT Gaskets, the program has led to concrete measures. A work-buddy mentoring program, more detailed introduction to work and to the company itself and various joint family activities are examples of how to welcome employees to work at TT Gaskets.
“Reviewing our international capabilities and receiving development ideas from the students has really helped us to develop further our operations”, TT Gaskets’ CEO Aleksi Arpiainen says.
Life in Finland | Aurora Borealis and company insights
June 13, 2022
This is the third part of Antoine Blanquart’s blog about his tenure in Finland and TT Gaskets. Also be sure to read the first and second parts.
For the next two months I will be working in the purchasing department, learning more about how the company deals with its suppliers around the world.
I finally met Teemu Sillanpää, Matti Alasuvanto and Mirko Vuorinen. Teemu gave me my first assignments, which are quite interesting and insightful for me as it is the exact application of what I have learnt during my studies. I’m looking for new European suppliers, preferably from a French-speaking country, for specific products that are quite complicated to find.
First impression of Finland
My life at Tampere is very interesting, I discover many things every day, whether at TT Gaskets or outside. For example, a few days ago, after having worked all day at TTG, we went for a walk next to the Pyynikki tour, the time was perfect because we were able to see the sunset!
Like you can see, the landscape is beautiful!
This weekend, the company lent us their car. Thanks to this, we went to Helsinki on Saturday with Lisa. The city is very impressive, the different infrastructure is very pretty!
We returned to Tampere in the evening. Oh! I forgot, speaking of this evening, at 10.30pm, I received a notification that said “Aurora Borealis”, we ran to the car to try to catch a glimpse of one! We went to the public sauna of Rauhaniemi and were lucky enough to see one. It was amazing and very pretty!
The picture is amazing, but what it does not say, this evening there was a lot of wind, the official temperature was -4 degrees, the real feeling was -12 degrees, very cold!But it was worth the effort.
TT Gaskets partners with Würth Svenska AB in Sweden
June 9, 2022
TT Gaskets and Würth Svenska AB have entered a partnership agreement. Effective immediately, Würth will become TT Gaskets’ official distributor and supplier of our stock gaskets and custom sealing solutions for industrial manufacturers and companies in Sweden.
The representatives of TT Gaskets and Würth Svenska AB met up at the Underhåll trade fair in Gothenburg in June.
“Würth’s slogan Happy customers together aligns with our mission to support and develop sealing solutions together with our customers. I believe that the partnership will enable both companies to provide even better service that caters to future industry needs,” TT Gaskets’ Sales Director Matti Salo says.
Founded in 1967, Würth Svenska AB is one of Sweden’s leading B2B suppliers of products, tools and machinery for the construction, automotive and engineering industries with 37 locations. We look forward to a fruitful partnership and new customerships!
Life in Finland | First days and hockey games
May 30, 2022
This is the second part of Antoine Blanquart’s blog about his tenure in Finland and TT Gaskets. Find the first part here.
On my first day Teemu Piipponen and Matti Järvinen organized a tour of the factory for me. I had the opportunity to see the company’s premises as well as the various warehouses. It was a surprise to see the great working environment with TVs and sport equipment for the employees. The welcome at TTG is just like this picture, incredible!
Settling in TTG
On my second day, I was able to catch up with Aleksi Arpiainen, CEO of the company. We discussed together the different projects we could undertake together. He also elaborated on how he wants to run TT Gaskets and his vision for the company. Ethics, CSR, and employees’ well-being are major priorities for him.
When back to my office after this meeting, I was surprised to find a rose on my desk for my girlfriend Lisa, to celebrate the Women’s Rights Day, on March 8th.
First Hockey Game
The following day I was invited by a few colleagues to see a hockey game. It wasn’t a random game as it was Ilves, one of the two Tampere teams, who was playing to keep their first place in the general ranking, knowing that the team behind them in the ranking is the second Tampere team, Tappara.
We went to the Nokia Arena, a brand-new stadium that opened last December. Great first impression for me discovering this very impressive sport that I didn’t really know much about!
At the end Ilves won 5–4 which we celebrated in a pub right next to the stadium where we could watch the Champions League match where the French team PSG got eliminated by real Madrid. Nevertheless, I was grateful as it was my birthday, and I got to spend a great evening with my colleagues to celebrate it!
”I believe in lifelong learning” – Matti Arpiainen celebrates 50 years at TT Gaskets
May 18, 2022
Matti Arpiainen, long-time CEO of TT Gaskets, has reasons to celebrate. The president of Finland granted him the title of Yrittäjäneuvos (honorary title awarded for entrepreneurship) in December 2021. Additionally, having started in the family business in 1972, Matti Arpiainen celebrated 50 years with the company in April.
– I had actually been doing small tasks and odd jobs at the factory for ten years before signing a contract. However, my first real job was at the Tampereen Trikoo sewing factory where I spent one summer folding women’s underwear at age fifteen. That was something I was too embarrassed about to mention to any of my schoolmates, Arpiainen says with a laugh.
From wartime innovations to a flourishing business
The history of TT Gaskets starts from the year 1943 when Väinö-Kustaa Järvinen and the Arpiainen brothers Eino and Jussi founded a business specializing in spare parts and gaskets for military equipment. With a mind for innovation, Matti’s father Jussi had proved his competence during his military service by designing gaskets for oil sumps and exhaust pipes of armored vehicles.
– My father was an inventive man who devised a boot grease substitute that was used in Winter War battles. Another of his inventions was a lacquer for wooden airplane wings. It was manufactured with celluloid that was sourced by melting old film reels of Finnish movies. My father used to say that he had done an atrocious act to Finnish culture, but war is war and desperate times call for desperate measures, Matti Arpiainen says.
After the war the company began manufacturing gaskets for heavy machinery required in rebuilding work. The rest is history: known then as Tampereen Tiivisteteollisuus, the business flourished and became known as an innovative company with the ability for solving customer problems quickly and manufacturing gaskets from any available material.
The essence of a family business
After starting studies at the Vaasa School of Economics, Matti Arpiainen had no intention of returning to his father’s business. Fate had other plans, and so Matti soon found himself in charge of the company’s binder-manufacturing functions.
– During my studies, I spent time in Germany and the Netherlands and gained a wealth of insight on what multi-generational family entrepreneurship is about: accumulating know-how and passing it on to the next generation. I have always encouraged our employees to keep an eye on new ideas and methods when traveling the world. In the old times industrial espionage was considered a taboo, nowadays sharing knowledge and skills is an accepted practice.
Competitive advantage from water cutting
Jussi Arpiainen passed the torch to his son Matti in the 1980s. During Matti Arpiainen’s tenure as CEO, TT Gaskets saw a large increase in international exports and activities.
– I wanted to automatize our production and find a competitive advantage to stand out in the Nordic market when I took charge. I encountered a revolutionary technology in Denmark: water cutting. I had a hard time accepting that the concept was actually viable, cutting gaskets with water sounded like science fiction to me. Nevertheless, I got to witness the technology with my own eyes and realized quickly that this is the future of gasket manufacturing. Water cutting is still one of our key methods here at TT Gaskets, Matti Arpiainen recounts.
Matti Arpiainen has been a global ambassador of Finnish gasket expertise during his long career. Having conducted business on all continents, he garnered thousands of driving kilometers all over Europe during the 1980s and 1990s with his working partner Jukka Sunila. Always in motion, Matti Arpiainen is driven by two key themes: people and machinery.
– I’m a firm believer in lifelong learning. I’ve always kept on studying new things and wanted to work with people from whom I can learn something. I am also endlessly interested in all kinds of machines, technologies, and mechanics, Arpiainen says.
Passing on the torch
The family ethos extends beyond ownership at TT Gaskets: nowadays you can find children, spouses and siblings of long-time employees working in the production hall. Matti’s son Aleksi Arpiainen became CEO of TT Gaskets in 2018. Matti is still involved in the business as chairman of the board, and he is overseeing the construction of TT Gaskets’ new solar power plant among other projects.
– When Aleksi started as CEO, it was clear to me that I must step back and let him establish himself. In some family businesses the older generation might have difficulties in letting go and they start undermining the younger generation by trying to wield power from behind the curtain. Aleksi has proved himself to be a modern leader with a strong vision of the future, and that is something I have no business meddling in, Matti laughs.
Life in Finland | Six months of darkness and Santa Claus, what else?
May 13, 2022
This is the first part of Antoine Blanquart’s blog about his tenure in Finland and TT Gaskets. More posts are to follow.
Hi, first let me introduce myself. I’m Antoine Blanquart from France and more specifically from Nice, in the French Riviera, currently studying for a bachelor’s degree in International Business at the IPAG school of business. As a part of my studies, I have an internship to do abroad to acquire new knowledge.
Mr. Aleksi Arpiainen used to work in Switzerland several years ago and kindly offered for TT Gaskets to host me for 6 months, which is an amazing opportunity for me.
This blog is a great way for me to share my impressions and feedback on Finland and on TT Gaskets.
Our Trip
We left France on March 3rd with my girlfriend Lisa and arrived in Tampere at 9 p.m. Over the day we lost 25°c, going from 15°c in Nice to –9°c in Finland.
Before arriving at Tampere, I knew practically nothing about Finland. I knew that the capital was Helsinki and that you had a region in the North called Lapland (the country of Santa Claus). It may surprise you, but in the mind of a Frenchman, in Finland it’s daytime for six months and then night for the other six months.
As you can see on this picture, there is some light. The time of the photo was 6.15 p.m.
I had already done several tourist trips abroad, but this was my first time traveling to a country for business purposes. It was also my first immersion in a company. I was quite apprehensive about my capacity to cope with a foreign language and business demands. However, it reassured me that I had already had some contacts with Aleksi and Mr. Matti Salo beforehand who contributed to making me feel more at ease.
Settling in Tampere
When we arrived in Tampere, Sanni Kraneis, the company HR, welcomed us and showed us the accommodations she organized for us. We discovered a great flat, we were really amazed by the size and beauty of it! Sanni was very thoughtful and put some beautiful flowers on the dining table and on top of that, they had done some shopping for us so that we could have breakfast the next morning as we arrived very late in Tampere.
We were settled in our new home for the six months to come.
This is the first part of Antoine Blanquart’s blog about his tenure in Finland and TT Gaskets. More posts are to follow.
Behind the gaskets | Expert interview: Sales Engineer Jarkko is a passionate problem-solver
May 10, 2022
Equipped with a strong background in machine design and product development, sales engineer Jarkko Lekkala started at TT Gaskets in April 2022.
– The best part of working in design is diving deep into technical challenges and finding the best possible solution. However, design can be a very lonely line of work, which is at times in contrast with my social and slightly competitive nature. I’m a restless soul at heart: I like my work to be variable and it’s especially nice if it includes travel, Jarkko says.
Driven by a will to develop himself in a varied work environment, Jarkko found himself at TT Gaskets.
– In this job I get to solve problems together with our clients and combine design with human interaction in the best possible way. Every customer case is different and requires tailored solutions. The solution-oriented mentality that I adopted in my previous design positions is a key asset also in sales.
Jarkko’s first weeks have been a crash course in the workings of the gasket industry.
– Of course, I’ve had some previous experience of working with gaskets, but in my earlier positions they have always been only one part of a larger whole. It’s fascinating to dive deep into a new field and gain knowledge from the gasket professionals here at TT Gaskets, Lekkala says.
With a diploma in engineering from the Tampere University of Technology, Jarkko Lekkala originally pursued a career in sports.
– Nowadays sports are a dear hobby of mine. Racket games, bicycling, motocross, gym training and many different endurance sports fill up my free time. As a balancing activity for sports, I also play the guitar, Jarkko lists.
Strong supplier relations and active anticipation carry through times of uncertainty
May 6, 2022
Different raw materials have become hard to come by during the COVID pandemic. The war in Ukraine only made things more difficult and caused unprecedented increases in prices – especially in stainless and acid-proof steels, but also in other types of industrial raw materials. Luckily, these availability issues have so far had only a moderate effect on us here at TT Gaskets.
Almost all our raw materials come from European and North American manufacturers with whom we have long and close business partnerships. However, strong supplier relations are not enough on their own. First, we must be able to anticipate and predict different possible scenarios, and then find active and innovative ways to shape our own future.
Implementing our growth strategy and preparations for increasing uncertainty have hastened the development of our purchasing function. We have revamped our supplier review process and taken steps into improving our raw material tracking model. Tampere Universities’ AI-Champions program has been a valuable resource in generating ideas for combining our forecast models with artificial intelligence.
70 years of partnership is a valuable asset
Despite the pandemic making traveling difficult, our purchasing department has been able to find new sources of raw materials by e.g., auditing new suppliers remotely. Our greatest asset in this time of uncertainty has been our strong longstanding business relationships with the world’s top suppliers. We have established deep and mutually beneficial relationships with many of our partners, many of which have spanned several generations over 70 years. Shared commitment to quality and the courage for innovation have made our collaborations fruitful in many ways.
Even despite the ongoing crises we have received great and quick support from many of our suppliers. A warm thanks to our partners! Together we have been able to overcome challenging situations. Trust is a strong foundation for partnerships and carries through even the hardest of times.
The quest for alternatives is on
Versatility has always been a part of the TT Gaskets’ ethos. We are a comprehensive partner for sealing and gasket solutions for our clients, many of whom have been willing to work in even closer collaboration to find alternatives for their raw materials. This has given us the ability to react quickly when anticipation hasn’t been enough.
Investing in our Smart Lab has also amplified the work for finding alternatives. We have been able to produce technical evaluations, compression set calculations even faster and supported our clients’ FEM modelling to approve new alternatives and innovate new technical solutions in their early development phases.
Over 2.000 raw materials in stock
Our COVID taskforce and the executive team’s risk and new potential assessments have enabled an anticipatory and flexible approach for TT Gaskets. We have been able to tackle potential risks that we have observed in our supply chains.
We currently have approximately 120.000 active product items and a stock of over 2.000 raw materials. Our large stocking capacity has always been a motor for our flexible operating model and ensured raw material availability for our clients. Even before the COVID crisis we had increased our stock levels in anticipation of longer delivery times.
Having a sufficient buffer has proved to be a great decision. The yearly 20 percent increase in our turnover during the last two years has brought on positive challenges in terms of availability of certain raw materials. Additionally, the COVID pandemic has increased the delivery times of some of our materials: even some of our most regularly used materials’ delivery times have risen from 4 to 44 weeks.
Increasing advantage from the solar power investments
The war in Ukraine has brought on sudden price increases of tens or even hundreds of percent for certain metals. Despite taking pre-emptive measures, this has had an influence on some of our end product prices.
Energy prices have also seen a strong increase, but we have been able to minimize the effects of rising expenses by investing into solar power. We implemented our first large solar investment in the summer of 2021, and in the coming summer 2022 we will double our solar power capacity. This enables us to cut our carbon emissions by 34.000 kilograms and generate over 25 percent of our energy consumption from the sun.
Here’s to hoping for a sunny spring! A warm thank you to all our excellent suppliers and customers! A strong will and open collaboration help us to overcome any challenge. We are also happy to welcome new and interesting additions to our sales personnel, enabling us to further deepen our customer collaborations and serve you in all your sealing needs.
Read more about these subjects on our LinkedIn page and website!
Aleksi Arpiainen
Aleksi Arpiainen is the CEO of TT Gaskets in the third generation. According to him, the success of a family business is fueled by continuous development and innovation. In the blog, Aleksi sheds light on his thoughts on where the world of gaskets is going.
Here we go again! The expo season approaches – Here’s where you can meet us
April 27, 2022
Trade fairs and expos are once again organized all over Europe, and TT Gaskets is taking part in many exciting events during 2022. If you want to hear all about the latest news and innovations in the gasket industry, be sure to meet our experts at our exhibition stands!
Here are some highlights from our 2022 event calendar:
With over 3,000 exhibitors from 60 countries, InnoTrans is the world’s leading trade fair for transport technology.
September 27–29: Alihankinta – Subcontracting Trade Fair, Tampere, Finland
The Alihankinta Subcontracting Trade Fair presents the metal, electronics, plastics and rubber industries, industrial ICT solutions, as well as design and consulting within these fields. Finland’s leading industrial event offers visitors a unique overview of the industry’s prospects and future.
The Elmia Subcontracting Fair is the largest event for manufacturing industry subcontractors in Northern Europe.
Behind the Gaskets | Expert interview: Experienced design manager is a valuable source of tacit knowledge
February 28, 2022
Celebrating 30 years at TT Gaskets, design manager Jari Suoniemi’s skills and expertise have grown together with the company. TT Gaskets’ numerous innovations have introduced new tasks and work methods.
Gasket design is at the core of Jari Suoniemi’s competence. His experience is so vast and varied that he spends a lot of his time passing on important information and skills to his peers and colleagues.
– I’ve always had the privilege of learning new skills in my work. For example, water and laser cutting are gasket manufacturing techniques that were originally introduced to me as new work methods, Jari says.
In addition to his design work, Jari is also in charge of managing the TT Gaskets production facility.
– I know the building very well, and I’m sort of looking after it. Our building automation and control system helps me monitor changes in heating and expenses. However, my main passion is still designing and creating, so these other duties are kind of a distraction, Jari says with a laugh.
”Gasket design needs to start as early as possible”
Jari started at TT Gaskets in 1992. His introduction to the company came in 1988 with an eccentric press automation project he designed as a thesis work for his engineering studies. The project proved to be significant as the machine is still in operation today. Jari has seen and experienced the progress in gasket design and manufacturing during his long career.
– Our work used to be more customer-driven as we were focused only on production. In my opinion, the industry is now headed towards a good direction. We begin collaborating with our customers in the early stages of their projects which enables us to design gaskets that match their needs, Jari says.
Jari feels there is still room for improvement in the business.
– Gaskets are small and often forgotten until the final stages of a project. This means that we often have only a couple of months to create a plan and design the final products. The industry is very hectic these days, Jari illustrates.
Working in a hurry is not ideal, but Jari is still motivated by the diversity in TT Gaskets’ projects. Interesting and varied tasks ensure that his work does not become monotonous. Jari likes the fact that he now shares his responsibilities with a colleague and doesn’t have to work alone anymore. Other departments and management also chip in.
Spare time with the family
An active working life keeps Jari refreshed also in his spare time. He has four children and seven grandchildren, the youngest of whom was born in February. The family spends a lot of time together.
– We have big get-togethers a couple of times per year. Food is an excellent incentive for luring everybody in, Jari says with a laugh.
Jari’s active everyday life also includes jogging and skiing. His mornings must include a cup of coffee and 100 grams of blueberries with no sugar.
