Setting up in Haparanda

Vision 2010

Haparanda - Tornio is an international centre in the Bothnian Arc and the Barents Region – a meeting place for culture and know-how, and the flow of goods, innovations and people

Rewarding cross-border exchanges Traditionally, trade and social contacts in North Scandinavia have been mainly in a north-south direction within the respective countries. Gradually, contacts in an east-westerly direction have become more frequent. The rate of development became appreciably higher after Sweden and Finland joined the EU.

Barents

Concrete collaboration Cooperation between the towns of Haparanda Tornio started in the 60s. It works extremely well and nowadays serves as an exemplar throughout the EU. Collaboration is extensive and the concrete results include cooperation on use of resources and on future investments.

North Sca

The towns share: • vision and community planning • a cooperation organisation • the labour market • educational facilities • technical services

Bothnia

Eurocity Concrete exchanges in North Scandinavia and the Barents Region are extensive today. Haparanda and Tornio – Eurocity – has a strategically important geographical location in this cooperation across the northern national border. Today, the common name for the twin towns of Haparanda and Tornio is Eurocity.

In the middle of the Bothnian Arc The offices of Bothnian Arc are now located in Haparanda. The Bothnian Arc is a major inter-regional project which began in 1998. The geographical area of this cooperation stretches from Skellefteå in Sweden to Kalajoki in Finland. The aim of the Bothnian Arc is to establish functioning regional cooperation between coastal towns and municipalities around the Gulf of Bothnia. This area contains the dominant industries of northern Sweden and Finland. The cooperation encompasses regional development in the fields of communications, environment and tourism, as well as the shared vision and community planning. The intent is to work towards increased exchanges of goods, services and human contacts.

Meeting poin

By tradition Haparanda is a centre for trade, k strategic location as a centre for trade, know-how, i Barents

At the centre of North Scandinavia Membership in the EU has created conditions to implement concrete cross-border development projects. Haparanda and Tornio are situated at the centre of North Scandinavia as a practical example, and a link between people and countries. The North Calotte Council (Nordkalottrådet) in different ways played a decisive role at an early date, by initiating cooperation and broadening exchanges in North Scandinavia between Norway, Sweden and Finland. Eurocity plays an important role in a wider perspective: as a point of entry into the Barents Region.

TDCF - why we came to Haparanda

Region

andinavia

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know-how, communications. Haparanda has a industry, enterprise and as a crossroad for the entire Region.

- a central role in the Barents Region Developments in Russia in the 90s totally transformed the situation, and made possible exchanges with Northwestern Russia. The Barents Region once more became a whole region. In the past too, Haparanda - Tornio functioned as a trade clearing centre, but also as an important entry point into the region. In historic times, the river was an artery, and today the Barents Road can take over that role, linking Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia.

“Haparanda. The name is attractive and

arouses curiosity among people one meets all over Sweden, says local manager Lars-Gunnar Lundström.

The name of the company TDCF stands for Tele Danmark Communication Försäljning (formerly FöretagsFakta) and it started operations in Haparanda in autumn 1995. “We were impressed by the educational options offered in the border town“, says local manager LarsGunnar Lundström. TDCF is a service provider and Lars-Gunnar Lundström has been with the company since the start. He describes his recipe for success like this: “Skilled and loyal personnel are a major strength. Part of our local strategy has been to make our name known in the Group and to make ourselves indispensable through our pool of specialised skills. This has meant that the Group has transferred more and more services to us“, Lundström goes on. TDCF works with guiding media. This means that once the customer has defined an issue or a wish, TDCF helps find the solution, that is, someone who can carry out the task in question. Northern most unit TDCF has 52 units in Sweden, with Haparanda as the northernmost one. The Nordic head office is in Copenhagen. The Haparanda office today has 20 employees. Solid development “These years have taught me that growth should be slow but sure. Create a good atmosphere among the employees in the company, acquire new appointments and recruit as needed. “We have a low personnel turnover, which perhaps is a good indicator of how happy our personnel are with their colleagues and work duties. “We have mapped out our road into the future. We will develop steadily, we will be good at what we do, and acquire new duties by actively working for the TDCF Group“, concludes Lars-Gunnar Lundström.

D-Link - why we came to Haparanda

“There are a large number of highly advanced services that can be offered far from the major cities. Haparanda proves it,“ Miguel Huhta says emphatically.

Eurocity - in a market Haparanda- Tornio is situated as a crossroads between two different areas at the apex of the Gulf of Bothnia, with access to the markets of four nations. The concentrated local market has 34,000 inhabitants - the combined populations of the towns.

D-Link set up operations in Haparanda in spring 2001. This global company has already noted favourable development in Haparanda, growing from three to eight employees. The Group started operations in 1986 and its head office is in Taiwan. The total number of employees worldwide is approximately 4,000. The company is a major manufacturer of network products. The company has been represented in Scandinavia since 1994, with offices in the capital cities as well as in the Swedish towns of Malmö, Örebro and Haparanda. As of the end of year 2002, Stockholm will be the head office for operations in northern Europe. Complex operations The Haparanda branch is responsible for technical customer support in the whole of Scandinavia, but after the re-organisation it will have other, more complex duties, now involving tendering for services to companies, distributors/telecom companies and consultants. “Back to basics, or back to our basic concept in Haparanda, working with companies. After reorganisation, we have broader responsibilities, and this increases the added value of our work. At the same time it develops our personnel, who have more challenges in their work,” says D-Link’s local manager in Haparanda, Miguel Huhta. “The offices in Haparanda and London share these duties. So we’re in good company,“ Huhta adds. A feather in their hat At the time of writing (October 2002), D-Link has been operating in Haparanda for 18 months. Good IT infrastructure, and the availability of skilled, multilingual and stable workforce were in Haparanda’s favour. In addition to English, Swedish and Finnish speakers, there was a need for personnel with a command of Danish and Norwegian. “A rewarding period. D-link has gained plenty of valuable experience. I myself have learned a lot and that goes for our personnel too. During this period, Haparanda has become a respected name in our European offices. “People have a good opinion of Haparanda,“ says Miguel Huhta.

Spare purcha 1,500 m

Total purchasing power in Haparanda and Tornio About 1,500 million of this is spent outside Hapara power in the region is growing. There

MODEHUSET - why we came to Haparanda

“We market about 15 big name brands from different suppliers. This is going to be fun and I hope we’ll help provide a good range in Haparanda,” says Sari Lövbrand.

After 15 years working in care, Sari Lövbrand’s dream became reality. She opened a clothes boutique in Övertorneå in 2001 and a year later, it was time to open a branch in Haparanda. “If it worked in Övertorneå it just has to work in Haparanda,” says Sari Lövbrand.

t with money to spend But there is also a large consumer market within commuting distance. Since ancient times, it has been a tradition among people in the area to travel to Haparanda - Tornio to shop.

ELON - why we came to Haparanda Pontus Kallioniemi is a tradesman in Haparanda and deputy chair of Gränsföretagarna, the business organisation for the border region. “The trade sector is strong and for us it is important to be part of a nationwide chain like ELON,” he says.

Rari Interiör AB is a true family business, which was founded in 1980. In 1989 the present 700 sq m facility was built in Haparanda. “We have taken several leaps forward in our development over the years. It’s a must if you want to make progress,” says Pontus Kallioniemi, 32 years old, and with over 15 years in the company. An important local market One of Haparanda’s main strengths is that within a limited radius there is a large market with purchasing power. Customers are encouraged to buy locally when there is a broad range of specialised shops. “The local market is crucial to trade. A positive image for Haparanda means a great deal to content-ment with the town. If you are content here, then you shop here,” says Pontus Kallioniemi.

asing power million!

o is approximately 2,200 million SEK per annum. anda and Tornio. Calculations show that purchasing are future business opportunities here.

“Haparanda

is expansive. It lies in a region with growth potential and nearby there is a large population with purchasing power. “Actions speak louder than words. I got in touch with people in Haparanda, studied the market, saw the potential, searched for suitable premises and when I’d put the pieces together, I made the decision. It all happened pretty fast. “The location is an attractive one; well-placed and easy to find. The floor space is 180 sq m. There’s plenty of traffic and good parking for the customers. We especially promote our quality range with big name brands in women’s and men’s clothing. We sell fashionable clothing and it’s our buying that is the bottom line,“ says Sari Lövbrand.

Strong trade sector Over twenty years ago, in 1981, Rari Interiör began collaboration with Scandinavia’s biggest manufacturer of kitchen fittings, Denmark’s HTH. “To broaden our range, we joined ELON, the nationwide electrical goods chain. The trade sector is important and has a strong position. A contented customer is the best advert. It’s an exciting job and fun when a customer says the job has been done perfectly. That’s when the neighbour also begins to take an interest in having a modernised kitchen,” Pontus Kallioniemi continues. Nearness to Finland important Finland today has the euro. At the Swedish-Finnish border, we have always lived with currency changes. The situation today is that Finnish customers represent 35-40 % of our turnover. “Cross-border trade has always been changeable. At present, it is in our favour,” says Pontus Kallioniemi.

Eurocity - a communications node The E4 trunk road has its easternmost point in Sweden in Haparanda, while trunk road 99 continues northwards, along the border. Here the railway links with the Finnish and the East European railway networks. A gauge converter allows rail transports across the border without trans-shipment. There is also a station serving passenger rail traffic. The ports in Tornio (Röyttä) and Kemi handle large quantities of cargo, mostly for export.

The lateral link Barents Road, from Bodø in Norway through Haparanda to Murmansk is almost 1,500 kilometres long. The recent opening of the Salla Customs station on the Russian border has opened the door to tourist and business projects. Murmansk, with about 400,000 inhabitants, lies 650 kilometres from Haparanda.

The Customs station sees the passage of over 5 million vehicles and about 16 million persons annually. All overland traffic converges here, mainly using the E4. There are ample transport resources for passenger traffic by coach and for goods traffic by truck. The coach service “Norrlandskusten” nowadays terminates in Haparanda. The E4 runs from Lisbon to Helsinki, and Haparanda - Tornio is an important stopover on that route. In other words, the E4 is an artery running right through the towns. The construction of the Bothnia Line is under way. The Norrbothnia Line has been moved up on the agenda in the government’s long-term infrastructure plans. This will make Haparanda an important node for future goods transports between Sweden, Norway, Finland and Russia. Haparanda’s nearest airport is only 15 minutes away. It is situated in Finnish Kemi and has several daily flights to Helsinki. Kallax Airport in Luleå is 130 kilometres away. Haparanda Municipality is lobbying intensively for a direct route from Kemi to Stockholm. Mediapolis is an IT and media development centre. In the area, university level courses in IT/media are to be offered. Education, business and the community are interacting to bring about Mediapolis.

Quality of life

EURO

- a communi

Haparanda - a we

The broad spectrum of the arts, events and associations of the two countries provides a rich selection of leisure-time activities for even the most fastidious. Here you will find interesting culture on either side of the border, for example, Aines Art Museum and the provincial museum, with its excellent collections. In Kukkola, the cultural environment includes the fishery museum, where you can learn about the unique fishing methods. Annual events include the International Jazz and Blues Festival, the Folk Music Festival Gränsspelet and the Whitefish Festival in Kukkola. The world’s only cross-border 18-hole golf course is here. You can hit the world’s longest drive - the ball lands in Finland over an hour later! Here you’ll find many and diverse associations.

CORROTECH On The Border (På Gränsen - Rajalla) is a project that has received much attention both in and outside Sweden and Finland. The aim of the project is to make available building land between Haparanda and Tornio.

- why we came to Haparanda

“The EU is purely advantageous for our setting up in Haparanda, with free trade and cross-border mobility,“ says MD Tapio Herajärvi.

Corrotech Oy was founded in 1954 in Tornio (Kyläjoki) by Reino Herajärvi. It is a modern engineering works, which in autumn 2002 went into sheet metal manufacturing with laser cutting. These operations are based in Haparanda. “There

OCITY

ications node

ealth of activities

Two indoor swimming pools, sports halls, floodlit ski tracks, equestrian centres, hockey rinks, an allweather bandy rink, football pitches, marinas etc. and everything is close. The River Torne is the longest undeveloped salmon river in Europe. Here you can catch salmon, grayling, whitefish (gwyniad) and trout. Haparanda’s archipelago is famous for its beauty, abundance of islands and its flora. The most fascinating area is Sandskär National Park, with its unique flora and fauna - there are rare species that are unique of their kind. The coastal area has more hours of sunshine than anywhere else in Scandinavia. The gem of the inner archipelago is the island of Seskarö. An adventurous and active leisure time is part of life in Haparanda. Haparanda is a good place in which to live and work.

were two main reasons why we set up the operations in Haparanda. We had access to good facilities and we gained an opportunity to grow on the Swedish market, which today represents 15 - 20 per cent of our turnover,” says Tapio Herajärvi, managing director. “Our Tornio plant has developed well in its 50 years of existence. We manufacture in structural steel, we make industrial noise reduction solutions and we carry out surface coating. “In Haparanda, we’re moving in to our own premises covering an area of 3,200 sq m,“ says Herajärvi. Corrotech Oy has a turnover of about 40 million SEK (2001). The main markets are Finland, Sweden, Norway and Russia. The company has 40 employees, 10 of them in Haparanda. Corrotech will have a very special character, putting EU free trade agreements into everyday practice. The head office is in Tornio. The company has recruited its workforce for this operation from both Sweden and Finland.

For more information: Haparanda Stad Utvecklingsförvaltningen SE-953 85 HAPARANDA

Street address: Stationsgatan 47 Tel: +46 922-150 00 (switchboard) E-mail: [email protected] www.haparanda.se/naring Production: Toolanen IT AB, HAPARANDA 2002 Translation: www.elex.nu

Regional Development Fund