Social Media
Share this article
TEVO LOKOMO is a well-known presence in the steel and bronze castings market with a reputation for quality and reliability. “By focusing on quality, and working on remaining competitively priced, we have become established as a reference for high-performance steel castings,” says Managing Director Jari Salo. “We can offer short lead times, on-time deliveries and unrivalled quality.”
Mr. Salo took over at the head of the company four months ago with a strong growth agenda. “We have a very long history and have been through several phases in our development that we can build on in the future.”
TEVO LOKOMO operates at the larger end of the castings spectrum, producing castings ranging from 400 kg to 30 t. As well as the casting, the company carries out the subsequent machining so that the customer receives a fully finished component.
“In the world market, we are in price competition with lower-cost countries, but unlike many of them, we are able to take on any challenge,” adds Sales Manager Timo Norvasto, who has been with TEVO LOKOMO for the past 15 years. “We can also cast stainless steel and manufacture more demanding products where our clients can find added value.”
Technically, TEVO LOKOMO is far ahead of its competitors. “Our proprietory vacuum-refined VACULOK ® steels offer excellent weldability and machinability, and are known for their low level of impurities,” says Marketing and Communications Manager Jani Vaalima. “They provide just one example of our superior materials expertise.”
Nowhere can this expertise be seen better than in one of the company’s biggest current projects. “At the end of last year, we embarked on our latest major research and development projects concerning steel propeller materials,” says Mr. Salo. “The aim is to develop steel that will help shipbuilders reach a number of key targets including improving fuel economy, and reducing environmental emissions and noise as well as overall costs.”
TEVO LOKOMO has vast experience in manufacturing both steel and bronze propellers at its foundries in Tampere and Turenki. Located in the heart of the city, environmental concerns have always been a priority.
“That a heavy industry like ours can occupy a location in an urban setting says a lot about our environmental standards,” insists Mr. Vaalima. “We have invested a lot in air treatment and waste management to get to this position.”
The company will continue to emphasize its environmental credentials. “We are very well equipped for the future in respect of caring for the environment,” says Mr. Norvasto. “We hope our customers will also apply more stringent requirements in their specifications because that is our competitive advantage.”
If TEVO LOKOMO is keen on exploring the performance possibilities of steel, its customers are interested in exploration in a more literal sense. “We were contacted by the Chinese scientific group Rainbowfish Ocean Technology Co., Ltd. In 2015 to build a steel cabin made from high-performance maraging steel for a submersible to take them 11 km below the surface of the Pacific Ocean to the deepest part of the Mariana Trench,” explains Mr. Norvasto. More people have been to the moon than have been to the bottom of the Mariana Trench, and there are still plenty of questions there to be answered.
After a two-year qualification process, the steel cabin will be produced later this year. TEVO LOKOMO has plenty of experience in deep sea missions, having supplied two research submersibles to Moscow as far back as the 1980s, but since then financing and therefore orders have been lacking for these kinds of extreme applications.
With high-profile expeditions like the Chinese one, it is possible that demand will increase in the future. The project is seen as a good example of what TEVO LOKOMO is capable of achieving. “I think that our main selling point is the fact that we are materials experts,” says Mr. Salo. “We can give clients the ideal solution for their needs, even if that means starting off at the drawing board.”
Besides the shipbuilding and mining sectors, this expertise is much in demand in hydro power generation, offshore applications, the paper and pulp industry, oil and gas exploration, and the nuclear energy sector. The TEVO group employs 200 people and generates turnover of around 40 million EUR.
“We expect growth in our key industries in the coming years and are gearing up to ensure that our service is second to none,” says Mr. Salo in conclusion. It is steeled for a future in which it has the material edge.