Jaakko Pöyry Group now exports Finnish consulting and engineering know-how to the North American market more strongly. Internationalization, a local presence and customer-responsiveness are the basis of the company's know-how prescription.

Jaakko Pöyry, the world's leading forestry consulting and engineering firm, acquired the Canadian forestry engineering firm NLK Consultants Inc. in December 2003.

"The acquisition was an important step for expanding our forest industry engineering network in North American and particularly in Canada," says Jukka Nyrölä, the President, Forest Industry Business Group.

The firm, which operates in Vancouver under the name Jaakko Pöyry NLK Inc., is now part of Jaakko Pöyry's worldwide specialist and office network, which covers all the most important production areas of the pulp and paper industry in the world. Besides Vancouver, Jaakko Pöyry has offices in Montreal, Wisconsin and New York.

Towards bigger companies

Being the biggest forest industry market in the world, North America creates interest, even though investment in recent years has been at a low level. As economic trends improve, however, new investment and, in particular, modernization are expected to start.

"When Finnish pulp and paper know-how is combined with broad-based international experience, local specialized expertise and the customer responsiveness that comes with local offices, we can provide a really high-level service using competitive means," Nyrölä believes.

He goes on to say that the trends in the forest industry worldwide are globalization and consolidation. The cyclical nature of the sector and capital intensiveness are leading to the creation of bigger companies through acquisitions and investment.

"Finnish know-how holds a strong position in this development. It requires not only continuous investment in developing skills but also international operations in many forms in adapting to its practice," Nyrölä stresses.

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Jaakko Pöyry provides services for the pulp and paper industry such as consulting, and planning and carrying out investment. In the picture Papier Masson Ltée in Canada.

Millar Western Pulp Mill in Canada.