2020 marks the 50th anniversary of Finnish forest machine company Ponsse. Today, the family-owned company, which started as an idea by forest machine entrepreneur Einari Vidgrén in a small village workshop, operates in harvesting markets in 40 different countries around the world. Over its 50 years, the company has become one of the world’s largest manufacturers of forest machines based on the environmentally friendly cut-to-length method.
Ponsse turns 50
Photo: Ponsse
“Ponsse has grown and developed, above all, thanks to its customers, stakeholders and personnel. Throughout our company's history, our customers have given us direct feedback to steer our research and development. What is more, the high quality, environmental and efficiency requirements set by forest companies and sawmills have clarified the direction of our R&D activities. We wouldn’t have been able to become one of the world’s leading forest machine manufacturers if it were not for our committed and professional personnel,” said Juha Vidgrén, Chairman of Ponsse’s Board of Directors.
“The highly demanding harvesting industry calls for determination and close cooperation. To quote our company’s founder Einari Vidgrén: “No one man could have done this on their own. It’s vital to find the right people. Ponsse continues to work following this same spirit, even today,” Vidgrén added.
Environmentally friendly harvesting and customer-driven R&D activities heavily steer Ponsse’s operations. The goal is to develop innovative products and services in line with sustainable development, with everything starting from customer needs.
Celebrating together round the world
Ponsse will celebrate its 50th anniversary at logging sites, together with its customers. The massive roadshow started in Finland on 23 January, with an anniversary lorry leading the way. From Finland, the Together roadshow will pass through Europe on its way to North and South America, Asia and Australia, covering 30 countries and 110 locations altogether.
The roadshow will stop at the FinnMETKO fair in Jämsä, Finland, at the beginning of September. Demonstrations will feature the latest models, the Ponsse Cobra harvester and the Ponsse Bison forwarder, and the flagship of the model series, Ponsse Scorpion. All forest industry professionals and everyone else interested in the field are welcome to watch the demonstrations!
At home in the world’s forests
Continuous investments and development have been Ponsse’s cornerstones ever since the 1970s. This has helped the company to improve its competitiveness. During the past few years, Ponsse has created more than 200 jobs and invested €145-million in its service businesses, R&D and production. All Ponsse forest machines are still manufactured in the company’s birthplace in Northern Savonia, where the four-hectare forest machine factory represents the most modern manufacturing technology in the world. Last year, the 15,000th PONSSE forest machine was manufactured in Vieremä.
Today, Ponsse has more than 1,800 employees in ten different countries and, in addition to the parent company, Ponsse Group consists of subsidiaries in Sweden, Norway, France, Russia, the UK, Ireland, the USA, China, Uruguay and Brazil, and Epec Oy in Seinäjoki, Finland, a manufacturer of machine control systems. The retailer network consists of 35 PONSSE retailers.
Einari Vidgrén, Ponsse’s founder, Juha Vidgrén, Chairman of the Board of Directors, and Jarmo Vidgrén, Sales and Marketing Director, tell the story of Ponsse.
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