Valmet
| Former type | Conglomerate |
|---|---|
| Industry | Heavy Industry and others. |
| Predecessor(s) | Valtion Kivääritehdas, Valtion lentokonetehdas, and other state enterprises |
| Successor(s) | Metso Corporation, Patria |
| Founded | 1951 |
| Defunct | 1999 |
| Headquarters | ???, Finland |
| Products | paper machines, board machines, Diesel engines, aeroplanes, automobiles, locomotives, trams, trolleybuses, weapons, everyday household appliances, etc. |
| Owner(s) | Finland ministry of trade and industry |
Finnish: Valmet Oy was a Finnish state-owned conglomerate. Valmet (originally Finnish: Valtion Metallitehtaat — English: State Metalworks) was formed in 1951, when the state of Finland decided to group their various factories working on war reparations to the Soviet Union under one company. Valmet and the factories fused with it produce a wide array of products including paper machines, board machines, aeroplanes, automobiles, Diesel engines, locomotives, trams, trolleybuses, weapons and everyday household appliances. Valmet merged with Rauma company in 1999, and the current Metso Corporation was created.
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[edit] Valmet Automotive
Valmet Automotive (former Saab-Valmet) is a Finnish car maker. The majority of company is owned by Metso (former Valmet). The automobile production company was founded in 1968. Valmet Automotive is a brand-independent contract manufacturer of specialty motor cars.[1] Historically Valmet Automotive has produced cars for Saab Automobile, Talbot, Renault, Lada, Opel and Porsche.
[edit] Weapons
Valtion Kivääritehdas was merged into Valmet in 1951. The firearms most notably developed by Valmet include the Rk 62, mod. 78 7.62x51, M82 and the RK 95 TP.
[edit] Aerospace
Main tasks were the assembly and licence production of Fouga Magister trainers, Saab Draken fighters and BAe Hawk trainers. The Tampere factory was closed in the 1960s and main part of the aircraft factory became the facility at Kuorevesi.
Indigenously-designed aircraft included the Valmet Vihuri in the 1950s, the Valmet Vinka in the late 1970s and the Valmet Redigo in the mid-1980s.
A line of military trainer aircraft for the Finnish Air Force developed and manufactured by Valmet include the L-70 Vinka and L-90 Redigo.
After the Finnish state privatized Valmet in 1996, the aviation division was detached and integrated into Finnish defence industries, Patria, as Patria Finavitec. The military part is mostly state-owned but EADS owns 27 per cent of Patria.
This period started with the assembly of F/A-18 Hornet fighter aircraft and NH90 helicopters. Civilian work increased in the form of participating in design and manufacture of parts for Airbus aircraft, most notably A380 spoilers.
[edit] Valmet-developed Airplanes
[edit] Paper mills
Other notable products were paper mill machinery and process control equipment. Valtion tykkitehdas produced artillery pieces for the Finnish Army along with Tampella AB industries. After World War II production switched to paper mills.
[edit] Shipyards
Valmet dockyards were merged with Wärtsilä yards to form Wärtsilä marine. After the bankruptcy the company re-emerged as Masa Yards, later becoming Aker Finnyards and subsequently Aker Yards.
- MS Birka Princess was built at the Vuosaari shipyard in Helsinki.
[edit] Rail vehicles
Between 1958 and 1991 Valmet procuded a large number of locomotives, diesel multiple units and electric multiple units for the Finnish State Railways, as well as a number of trams for Helsinki City Transport.
[edit] Locomotives
- VR Class Hr11
- VR Class Dv11
- VR Class Dv12
- VR Class Dv15
- VR Class Dv16
- VR Class Dr12
- VR Class Dr16
- VR Class Tve4
[edit] Diesel multiple units
[edit] Electric multiple units
[edit] Trams
[edit] Trolleybuses
The company also manufactured trolleybuses, between 1948 and 1960, but the total number built was only 52, comprising 23 for Helsinki and 29 for Tampere.[2]
[edit] Tractors
Tractors have been produced by Valmet, both in Brazil and Finland. The producer and brand is now Valtra. The tractor business, though still located in Finland, is owned by AGCO.
[edit] See also
- Karmann in Germany
- Magna Steyr in Austria
- Bertone and Pininfarina in Italy
- Heuliez in France
[edit] References
- ^ "Valmet Automotive at a glance". Valmet Automotive. http://www.valmet-automotive.com/automotive/cms.nsf/www/glance.
- ^ Murray, Alan (2000). World Trolleybus Encyclopaedia. p. 99. Yateley, Hampshire, UK: Trolleybooks. ISBN 0-904235-18-1.
[edit] External links
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