When annual sawing capacity is half a million cubic metres and products are delivered to more than 30 countries, there is no room for compromise when it comes to technology. Westas Group is one of the largest private sawmill companies in Finland, and its operations are built on high quality and responsibility.
Westas noticed that the board scanners in use were reaching the end of their life cycle. With production volumes growing, the company needed a partner able to offer next-generation solutions to secure its competitiveness. The choice fell on Finnos.
Westas quality manager Jarmo Joki emphasises that alongside the technology, trust and service capability weighed heavily in the decision.
"The familiar people at Finnos and their quick, flexible response to our needs weighed in the decision-making. The experiences of the scanners we heard from others also influenced our decision. In addition, Finnos had a good solution to offer for log measurement," Joki says of the background to the choice.
The collaboration did not stop at a single delivery but has expanded into a comprehensive partnership. Jarmo Joki notes that the close cooperation will continue in the future: "The log and board scanner deliveries already agreed with Finnos will continue in the summer of 2026."
In industry, installation time is time taken directly out of production, so preparations matter a great deal. Joki praises how straightforwardly the transition to the new system was carried out.
"The preparations for installing the scanners and lifting them into place together with their conveyors shortened the installation time, enabling fast commissioning," Joki says, and continues: "The commissionings have gone as planned even on a tight schedule, and the cooperation has worked as expected."
One of the most significant technical leaps was achieved in board grading. Finnos' turner-free scanning technology removed mechanical bottlenecks from the line.
Jarmo Joki emphasises that turner-free measurement of sawn timber pieces has been a major step forward: "It has made it possible to raise line speeds and has reduced the disruptions caused by turning."
The new system has also been well received by the line operators. The ease of use of the system and the accessibility of the data have made everyday production control easier.
"Real-time data and diagnostics help us monitor and react quickly to changed situations, both in production and in production control," Joki says, adding that access to the data and its analysis have been found easy thanks to the browser-based user interface.
Although the equipment represents the top of the industry, Westas particularly values the support that keeps the line running in all situations. Jarmo Joki says the round-the-clock Helpdesk has brought clarity to handling any problem situations, thanks to the low threshold for getting in touch.
Finally, Joki reflects on the significance of the investment for the sawmill's future: "In the future, through the Finnos scanner product family, we expect to gain valuable additional information about the raw material we use, as well as increased profitability as our operations develop with more accurate measurement technology."
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