Metso wins the Quality Innovation of the Year award and is granted the accolade Recognized for Excellence

Published Nov 14, 2008 08.00.00 +2 GMT

Metso has won the Quality Innovation of the Year award for 2008 and has been granted a top accolade in the Finnish Quality Award competition. These competitions are held by Excellence Finland.

In the Quality Innovation of the Year competition, Metso came out top in the major corporations category. The prize was given for Metso’s PowerDry Plus drying technology and for the related product used in drying paper and board coating. These were both developed by Metso Paper’s Air and Chemical Systems unit in Turku, Finland. The technology has been commercialized, and a resulting product has already been delivered to many customers in the paper industry. In its preamble to the award, the competition jury stated that the winning innovation in this particular field represents a significant advance for energy efficiency in the paper industry and will help the industry achieve its environmental goals.

In the Finnish Quality Award competition, Metso’s Paper and Board Machines unit in Jyväskylä was granted the accolade Recognized for Excellence in the major corporations category. The assessment is based on the European EFQM Excellence Model. The jury commended the Paper and Board Machines unit for creating a laudable corporate culture in which the customer’s impact is strongly felt. According to the jury, the company’s strategy has for the most part been visibly translated through the entire organization.

The award-winning achievements have been built on years of systematic development and continuous improvement. The valuable feedback given in the competition will help the company to further develop its products, operations, and competitiveness.

The competition results were announced at the Finnish Quality Award Gala in Helsinki on November 13, 2008. The prizes were accepted on behalf of Metso by Henrik Karlstedt, Vice President, Air and Chemical Systems, and Jari Vähäpesola, Senior Vice President, Paper and Board Machines.

Metso is a global engineering and technology corporation with 2007 net sales of approximately EUR 6 billion. Its almost 27,000 employees in approximately 50 countries serve customers in the pulp and paper industry, rock and minerals processing, the energy industry and selected other industries.

For additional information, please contact: Henrik Karlstedt, Vice President, Air and Chemical Systems, Metso Paper, Tel. +358 40 514 8094 Ilkka Jokioinen, General Manager of Quality and Environment, Air and Chemical Systems, Metso Paper, Tel. +358 40 503 1157 Sakari Häyrynen, Vice President, Sales and Marketing, Paper and Board Machines, Metso Paper, Tel. +358 40 563 3742