Nobia to close plant in Finland
Nobia has today decided to concentrate its production in the Finnish business unit Novart to the plant in Nastola. This means that the plant in Forssa will be closed. In addition, a decision has been made to reduce the number of personnel in other functions. In total, this means that up to 152 employees (131 workers and 21 salaried employees) will be laid off. The business unit currently has approximately 520 employees.
The decline in construction of residential properties in 2008 has markedly reduced Novart's order bookings and has resulted in a decrease in its order backlog. In light of this, Novart convened statutory co-operation procedure talks about six weeks ago. These negotiations, which encompassed all employees, were concluded on 24 October.
Due to the additional production in Nastola, Novart expects to be able offer job opportunities, in addition to existing personnel, to approximately 40-60 workers and 4-6 salaried employees at that plant. Those who have been issued notice of termination will have priority for these positions.
Furthermore, Novart has decided to implement lay-offs for fixed periods of time that will affect all other personnel.
The personnel reductions will take place between November 2008 and June 2009. These changes will not affect customer deliveries or customer relations.
Nobia AB
30 October 2008
For further information, contact
Preben Bager, President and CEO or
Ingrid Yllmark, Director Communications & IR, tel. +46 8 440 16 00 or +46 708 65 59 00
Jorma Lehtovuori, Business Unit Manager Novart, tel. + 358 400 352 174
Nobia is a Group of about twenty strong kitchen brands. Sales of complete kitchen solutions are conducted mainly in Europe through various channels, such as nearly 700 specialised kitchen studios, other retailers and B2B customers, as well as directly to the construction sector. Annual net sales total approximately SEK 16 billion and the Group employs about 8,000 people. The Nobia share is listed on the OMX Nordic Exchange in Stockholm, short name NOBI.