SISU AUTO – 90 YEARS OF THE FINNISH AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY

 

SISU AUTO – 90 YEARS OF THE FINNISH AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY

”The company’s long history provides an excellent basis for the future”

A fascinating success story of the Finnish automotive industry and Sisu Auto started when Oy Suomen Autoteollisuus Ab began manufacturing SISU truck products on April 1st, 1931. During these 90 years, various SISU-branded vehicles manufactured in Finland have made the SISU brand recognized around the world and built SISU as one of the most well-known Finnish brands.

Since the beginning, Sisu Auto has had a role as pioneer in the Finnish automotive industry. The total volume of SISU production, more than 50 thousand vehicles made so far, comprise a wide range of different vehicles: trucks, buses, trams, rail vehicles, military vehicles, rescue and special vehicles, as well as a myriad of their various components from engines to axles.

The direct employment effect created by the company so far is more than 64 thousand domestic person-years. In addition, Sisu Auto is employing also large number of staff of partner companies in the manufacture and after-sales of SISU products. Today, the company’s number of employees is about one hundred, and in addition Sisu Auto indirectly employs a domestic staff of about 380 in the manufacture of SISU components and spare parts and maintenance services.

In addition to today’s top SISU truck products and special vehicles, many of the world’s most successful Finnish vehicle products, related technologies and transportation solutions are spin-offs originating from Sisu Auto. Many of the automotive professionals have qualified for international operations and projects by working at some point in their careers at Sisu Auto. Today, the company exports Finnish automotive know-how to the global market, mainly in the form of design services.

  • Sisu Auto’s competitiveness in a rapidly changing operating environment is secured by its ability to transform and specialize. Effective utilization of our expertise and focus on the most demanding driving tasks and special vehicles are prerequisites for the existence of the today’s Sisu Auto. The historically broad European truck industry is concentrated in a few large manufacturers and a number of special vehicle manufacturers, including Sisu Auto, each of which has found its place in meeting the needs of the most demanding customers, says entrepreneur, Chairman of the Board Timo Korhonen.

The idea of combining special vehicle manufacturing and mass-produced components has been Sisu Auto’s most essential strategic choice. For a decade already, Sisu Auto has been cooperating with the world’s largest commercial vehicle manufacturer Daimler Truck AG. This has given access to use of the industry’s latest technologies in new SISU products, and the ability to flexibly produce unique small series products at competitive prices.

  • SISU Polar truck products are high-quality, high-performance vehicles designed for demanding applications. This combined with economical life-cycle costs result in profitable business for the operators. As a result of the facelift of SISU Polar series implemented a year ago, the task-specific information provided for the driver, as well as the vehicle controls have been taken to a whole new level. The most significant of the new innovations resulting from Sisu Auto’s continuous technological development work, is the sole diesel-electric hybrid solution designed for heavy trucks on the market, which further improves the productivity of SISU Polar vehicles in comparison with competing products, says Petri Kananen, the company’s CEO.

The increased global instability in recent years has created a rapidly growing demand for armoured military and rescue vehicles. To meet this need, Sisu Auto has developed a completely new, highly protected, truly modular SISU GTP product family, which combines Sisu Auto’s special expertise, proven in-house protection solutions and competitive mass-produced vehicle technology.

  • SISU GTP is designed for armoured personnel carrier and patrol use. The very same vehicle solution can also be utilised as a system vehicle and in different rescue missions in challenging conditions. With the ongoing delivery project for the Finnish Defence Forces, a serial production capability has now been created for the SISU GTP product family. This means the capability to efficiently produce large amount of these vehicles, says the company’s military vehicle business director Jyri Ahonen.

Today, the company’s know-how capital is also utilized to a significant extent in the supply of design and product development services to the automotive industry of emerging markets. Sisu Auto has already successfully delivered several large product development projects to its customers and established strong customer relationships with them. The company’s services business closely links the synergies of the various business functions and provides the company with opportunities to further invest in its own know-how and products.

  • Sisu Auto continues towards its 100-year anniversary by these three business functions. Over the next decade, military vehicle production will grow to become a more significant part of our company’s core businesses. Design service exports will be further developed, and the goal is to raise SISU brand as a key technology developer for growing large scale manufacturers. For our truck customers, we want to become the most sought-after premium supplier, able to serve our customers on an entrepreneur-to-entrepreneur basis, the entrepreneur Timo Korhonen concludes. 

 

 

Additional information  

CEO, Petri Kananen, Oy Sisu Auto Ab, puh. +358 50 468 1232

Chairman, entrepreneur, Timo Korhonen, Oy Sisu Auto Ab, puh. +358 50 439 5759

More detailed information and pictures on the history of Sisu Auto and the Finnish truck industry, on the internet at www.sisuauto.com/en/

Full resolution pictures can be found HERE