Earlier this week Ahlstrom announced plans to reduce operations at its glassfiber plant in Karhula, Finland. According to Ahlstrom, a maximum of seven jobs may be cut in its winded roving department— which employs 10 people—during the end of 2008 and the beginning of 2009. The company attributes the cutbacks to its strategic focus on producing roll goods. Winded roving comprises only a small part of Ahlstrom’s glass nonwovens business.

In line with its strategy, Ahlstrom has focused during recent years on the production of roll goods in its glass nonwovens business. The largest product lines of the business area are glassfiber tissue and specialty reinforcements. The company produces smaller amounts of specific products, which include winded roving. The product is used as reinforcement in the building industry, and accounts for 2-3% of the business area’s net sales.

In the future Ahlstrom will focus on serving its key customer base in winded roving and plans to change from a two-shift production model to a one-shift arrangement. The possibility to employ the potentially redundant employees through internal transfers at Ahlstrom’s Karhula and Mikkeli plants will be considered, the company said. Ahlstrom’s plant in Karhula is part of the company’s glass nonwovens business area, and it employs more than 400 people.