“The idea of investing in Glaston’s ProL-zone laminating furnace started as an R&D project for us. We wanted to see how it functions on one of our own safety glass lamination machines built in-house. The goal for us is to raise capacity and improve our lamination line’s energy efficiency. We’re starting an extremely demanding safety glass project and plan to put ProL-zone to the test,” says Aki Harjunpää, CEO of Jaakko-Tuote, Finland.
Jaakko-Tuote has relied on Glaston over the years for the latest technology to help them stay ahead in the industry. To reach six-meter tempering capability in 2018, the company was the first in Scandinavia to buy the Glaston Jumbo Series tempering line.
Based in Panelia, a small town in southwestern Finland, the company has proven it can push boundaries and rise to new challenges with exceptional quality results recognized throughout the world.
“We’re also known for reliability, quality and long-term relationships,” says Aki. “We’re still a private, familyowned business. Whereas stock companies focus on quarterly results every three months, our “Q” stands for a quarter of a century.”
Started in the early 1970s by Aki’s father, Veli Harjunpää, Jaakko-Tuote has been manufacturing safety glass since the very beginning. Today, the 50-year-old company manufactures safety glass for the architectural and automotive markets, with a split of approximately 60% for the domestic market and 40% for export.
“We focus on high-quality safety glass applications – nothing standard. Everything we make are specialties - thick glass and glass with Low-E qualities,” says Aki.
The company’s latest challenge is to provide safety glass at a very high level. So, they plan to use ProL-zone for this demanding architectural safety glass project.
Glaston’s ProL-zone laminating furnace is a quick and cost-effective upgrade to recharge any existing laminating line with full convection. Because ProL-zone does not differentiate between glass types, it enables glass processors to reach higher production capacity when laminating clear glass and Low-E glass. The convection system ensures heat uniformity and provides consistent quality. In addition, it offers up to a 100% capacity increase over traditional infrared heating.
“When we saw the way the full forced convection technology worked on the tempering furnace, we wanted to use it on our lamination process, as well,” Aki explains. “So, that’s why we bought ProL-zone as a test – a kind of R&D project. If it comes close to the capacity claimed, we’ll be extremely satisfied.”
Jaakko-Tuote decided on the Glaston ProL-zone to take advantage of the forced convection technology that enables the best possible control over chamber temperature. “This allows us to have greater volume during every shift. Additionally, it is more energy efficient, consuming less energy and better supporting our company’s green values.”
“Another thing our operators like with the new ProL is the operator interface. It is easy to use, and changeover times are minimal. We are satisfied with the investment and support from Glaston. We plan to consider changes in our production of laminated safety glass for the future, too, by updating our other laminating lines with similar arrangements.”
The company placed the order in August 2021, and ProL-zone was installed during the last week of February 2022. It took exactly seven business days for the installation and commissioning – less than originally planned.
“Learning the new technology was easy and took only two days,” Aki says. “We’ve been manufacturing laminated glass for the past 50 years. We know what we’re supposed to do.”
Aki reflects that getting through the COVID pandemic seemed relatively easy. The Russian-Ukrainian war poses much greater threats to his business.
“My biggest worries are supply chain shortages of materials and escalating prices. At the moment, it is like running a business in the London fog. You need to go forward, but the situation isn’t clear. It is changing every week,” he says. “To adjust, it’s important for us to stay healthy, keep production running and take care of our people, materials and machinery.”
Jaakko-Tuote has had a solid track record of moving forward – and also rising to new challenges that come their way. Their ability to adjust and move up while continuing to deliver reliability and quality has already taken them a long way in the global glass industry from their small-town beginnings.
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