Wired service
The view from the factory door into the main hall of the Crimppi factory is impressive, with its scenery of wire harnesses and optic cables. The 5,400 square metres of factory space is larger than it seems from the outside. The long corridor is lined with workstations, grouped according to client. A young woman passes in the corridor; she is no exception at the factory, since nearly 70 percent of the employees at Crimppi’s Vaasa factory are female. When the company’s other offices in China and Croatia are taken into account, the percentage of women rises even further.
It is tidy, clear, and spacious wherever you look, even though the storage shelves are full of the materials used in product manufacturing, as well as the finished products waiting to be sent to clients. In addition to wire harnesses and optic cables, Crimppi also assembles electromechanical products.
Crimppi’s owner and CEO Timo Harri describes the company as a subcontractor, though it has succeeded by offering its clients more than just subcontracting. The company has invested a lot of effort into improving the agility and effectiveness of its processes as well as in developing client-centered approaches. The added-value solutions, like engineering services and customized logistics solutions, are based on customer specific models tailored to fit customer needs.
“Some of our clients have outsourced their entire production to us, meaning that we take care of the entire process, including storage and logistics. The best approaches are formed in long-term client relationships, through which we can properly understand the client’s needs and adapt our manufacturing processes accordingly. This enables us to save time and to offer expert solutions that improve quality,” Harri says.
Wire harnesses and optic cable manufacturing is done manually and it requires accurate and persistent work. Although it is a labour-intensive industry, machines are still important at specific stages of production. The machinery and approaches to manufacturing are designed to be similar across the company’s three factories. This makes it possible for work projects to move between different locations flexibly.
“Crimppi’s strength is in its agility and breadth, since our skills and state-of-the-art machinery enable us to manufacture a wide range of products,” Harri says.
