The gate building completed for SSAB steel plant, located in Raahe, Finland, and the fire station under construction are significant investments which will contribute to the future confidence in the Finnish steel industry. The importance of partners such as installers, designers and component suppliers is also emphasized in large new projects in this size range. Elcoline Group is SSAB’s long-term maintenance partner. With these projects, the co-operation has expanded to include HVAC entities.

Elcoline is known at the SSAB Raahe plant, especially as a mechanical maintenance operator which provides services locally. The cooperation between Elcoline and SSAB in the field of heating, water, ventilation and automation systems started last summer with a gate construction project, which showed that Elcoline also handles complete HVAC deliveries.

– We wanted to test how the cooperation with Elcoline works on HVAC projects. However, we reached them through the normal tender procedure, says Pekka Länkinen, Area House Manager at SSAB’s Raahe plant.

Independent reporting and procurement of materials facilitate the subscriber’s work

The gatehouse and fire station are both new developments that have been built to replace old properties which are already at the end of their life cycle. For SSAB, these are significant investments for the future. Elcoline’s services include complete HVAC deliveries for the gate building and the fire station, which is currently under construction.

Partners are required to have project management skills in large new projects. Total deliveries of this type are suitable for an Elcoline-sized partner, with sufficient experience and competency in terms of resource and financial management to handle a large-scale project. On the other hand, agility and speed are Elcoline’s strengths, and the sourcing of materials emphasizes the smoothness of operations. All Elcoline employees in Raahe are local. If necessary, Elcoline will be able to rapidly increase its capacity utilizing its units in other locations.

– When I have visited the site, I have been able to focus on my own business and Elcoline has taken care of everything else, Länkinen says.

Elcoline’s independent reporting and customer service are also praised. The subscriber’s work is facilitated when several services are available from the same place. For example, all automation and HVAC materials required for building the fire station comes from Elcoline.

– The phone is answered whenever you make a call or at least have been called back during the same day. Elcoline has adhered to the agreed schedules. No project has been delayed due to the work on the HVAC side, Länkinen says

Professional installations

Länkinen has not found any complaints about the work done by the installers either. After the commissioning of the gate building, a wish emerged from the coffee machine line.

– There was feedback from the gate that the installer did a good job. It didn’t take long. A skilled gang, he sums up.

Solid experience in total HVAC deliveries

Elcoline has been cooperating extensively with SSAB on maintenance and projects for over twenty years. The company also has solid experience in total automation and HVAC deliveries since 2017. To date, the largest project involved automation and HVAC work on a 6,000-square-meter school building. Elcoline also offers a lifecycle service including, among other things, remote monitoring, which is suitable for both building properties and industrial building services.

All traffic passes through the gate building of SSAB’s Raahen plant – there is a reception where passes are applied for, where hauliers and guests go to identify themselves. The building comprises the facilities required by the gate functions and staff, the main control room, the office and the social facilities. In addition, a new fire station (approximately 1,150 square meters) is under construction, which is scheduled for completion in late summer 2022.

The aftercare of the gate building includes maintenance inspections twice a year. They are included in the contract. Elcoline’s local forces are ready for service.

Aino Soutsalmi, Päivi Tervonen

Photo: SSAB Raahe