the magazine from lindab that focuses on simpler building

Lindabdirectthe magazine from Lindab that focuses on simpler building solutions. December 2007

www.lindab.comventilation indoor climate building systems building components

Silent solutionsBravida chooses Silentduct

Lindab squaredMultiple deliveries provide customer benefits

Simplified construction IINew stud system ready for launch

360° PlexusMost natural chilled beam

Smart ‘click’ solutions

making headway

�� we simplify construction

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Lindab’s advertising campaign “We simplify construction” continues to create advertisements emphasising the advantages of Lindab’s various ‘click’ solutions. Lindab and the advertising agency Ehrenstråle BBDO recently claimed 3rd prize for “The best Swedish producer advertising” at the 100 Watts advertising gala for the advertising released so far.

December 2007

Natural solutionsnew Plexus chilled beam circulates gentle cool air 360°

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articles

Exciting Russian trip for UTS – and Lindabcooperation with the Swedish-Russian distributor of building components rolls on

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Lindabdirectventilation indoor climate building systems building components

Group news and share information5

in brief

News from the Ventilation business area24News from the Profile business area26

Cooling vent for red hot production3.7 km duct system for NIBE's new stove production plant

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Lindab2

Astron-deliveries from both business areas provide simplified purchasing and building process

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Sound – an indoor climate parameter to take seriouslyBravida in Århus benefits from Lindab’s competence in acoustics and the new Silent Duct product

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New time saving ‘click’ solutionProfile business area soon to launch new stud system with performance-enhancing ‘click’ assembly function

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Building of the Year Astron competition highlights steel’s aesthetical and structural possibilities

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Rainline Denmark at full throttleLindab Denmark emphasises the opportunities with Steel metallic in-store solutions

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Lindab Direct is a magazine for Lindab’s customers and stakeholders.

Total circulation approx. 50,000 in several languages.

Responsible publisher: Lars Dahlström. Production: Repetera AB.

Content may not be copied or reproduced without written permission from Lindab.

© Lindab 2007. www.lindab.com

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M+M Technik convinced by the benefits of Safe ClickSwiss ventilation fitter with high demands praises Lindab’s new duct system

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Cover shows Bravida’s Silent Duct Installation at the Aarhus music house.

It just went ‘click’. A well-known quote that those with good memories are sure to associ-ate with H.M. King Carl XVI Gustaf’s descrip-tion of the moment when love struck. Love is perhaps not the first emotion one associates with product development, but nonetheless, passion is an important element in all innovative work. At Lindab, we are proud of this passion and commitment that many of our employees devote to what we see as our task – to simplify construction.

When an idea is conceived it is, admittedly, the result of many years of speculation about how problems should be solved and prod-ucts improved. When the solution does finally present itself, it often just goes ‘click’ and there it is! Often simple and smart, and of course – in retrospect – totally obvious. Many of our good ideas have not only struck like a bolt out of the blue, as in the King’s case. The ‘click’ has also been very much part of the idea. Solutions based on simplified assembly methods and completely new, often ground breaking, ideas such as time-saving, back-saving and energy-saving.

However, simplified construction deals with more than just products. It is about understand-ing the entire purchasing and building proc-ess so that the customers' working day can be improved on all levels. This is what we are continuously striving for. Those moments when the customer sees everything fall into place and choosing Lindab becomes entirely natural. “It just went click”.

This issue of Lindab Direct takes interest-ing “snippets” from our customers’ and our

own working days. For those of you who focus especially on ventilation, there is a range of ar-ticles shining the spotlight on the significance of airtight, energy-saving and silent indoor climate solutions. Read about what the highly renowned Swiss ventilation fitter, M+M Tech-nik, thinks about Lindab’s new Lindab Safe Click distribution network (clue; it went click!). The history behind Lindab’s new Plexus chilled beam explains why it is as naturally good as it actually is, and Lindab Denmark tells its story about how it helped Bravida and Århus munici-pality to hushhh ventilation solutions.

The Profile business area and Astron ex-plain how they have created a multitude of customer benefits through utilising several of the opportunities offered by Lindab. Includ-ing their work with the “Astron Building of the Year” competition to emphasise aesthetics in steel construction work. The article on Lindab’s new RdBX stud system, a further example of a ‘click’ solution à la Lindab, is likely to be of inter-est to many as is the development of building component sales on the Russian market. In this report, there will be a clear focus on Lindab’s long-term customer, UTS.

A small selection of what we hope will suc-ceed in providing some enjoyable reading.

Welcome to Lindab Direct.

Welcome to Lindab Direct Lindab in brief

Lindab Direct December 2007

Lindab is an international group that develops, produces and markets sheet metal products and system solutions in the Ventilation and Profile business areas.

Lindab’s central idea is to contribute to simpli-fied construction in every phase of the building process.

The Lindab Group employs over 5,000 people in 30 countries, and had a turnover of SEK 7,609 million in 2006. Group headquarters are located in Grevie, Sweden, just outside Båstad on the beautiful Bjäre peninsula. Lindab is listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange, OMX, under the LIAB ticker.

The Ventilation business area offers ventilation components and complete indoor climate solu-tions to the ventilation industry. The business area has two divisions:

Air Duct Systems (ADS), whose main products are circular duct systems with rubber seals for ventilation.

Comfort, which manufactures and markets equipment for air distribution and indoor climate control.

The Profile business area supplies the con-struction industry with a comprehensive range of building components and complete building systems in steel for commercial and residen-tial properties. The business area has two divisions:

Building Systems, which manufactures and markets complete building systems in steel.

Building Components, whose main products are complete steel systems for roof drainage, light-weight construction and roof and wall systems.

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Lindab Direct December 2007Group news

The integration of CCL Veloduct Ltd, the UK’s leading ventilation distributor acquired by Lindab at the end of 2006, is moving ahead faster and smoother than planned. Since the acquisition, Lindab’s ventilation activities in the UK have gone under the name of CCL Veloduct. However, this was changed on 1 October 2007 and now all ac-tivities are marketed under the brand name Lindab.

“The successful integration of CCL into Lindab has allowed us to make this planned move ahead

of schedule,” says Kjell Åkes-son, CEO of Lindab. “Custom-ers have responded well to the developments of the past year and we are satisfied that we have a strong enough platform from which to grow the Lindab brand in the UK. Today, we are the leading ventilation com-pany in the UK. Meanwhile, we have also been making inroads into the roof drainage market with our Profile business area. Here, we can offer an

attractive steel alternative to the traditionally British PVC products through our Rainline system.”

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Lindab strengthens its brand in the UK

At Lindab’s first capital market day since their reintroduction to the stock exchange at the end of 2006, the company was able to present a string of positive developments. The 50 or so representa-tives who gathered on September 12 at Lindab’s Grevie plant consisted of analysts, agents and large investors, as well as financial journalists and news agencies. The company’s CEO, Kjell Åkes-son, informed those present that Lindab has de-cided to adjust one of the five financial goals the company had set itself. “This adjustment concerns our operating margin (EBIT), which we have raised from 12 to 14 percent,” explains Kjell Åkesson. “This change can be viewed against the back-ground of the fact that we have already succeeded in achieving the goal we set in 2006. We can see the potential for profitable growth, partly on the grounds of our own development and partly on the basis of the positive macro-economic forecasts. Our internal goal-oriented activity programme ‘Fill the Gap’ is progressing at full speed and right now it includes more than 450 activities designed to en-sure that the goals are achieved.”

Among other significant news that was pre-sented was the state-of-the-art construction joist with its click-function fitting (see page 18) and Building Systems large Russian order worth some SEK 50 m concerning a sports centre that is being built about 400 km east of Moscow. There was considerable focus on the growth markets in CEE/CIS, at which point Handelsbanken’s chief econo-mist, Jan Häggström, contributed with his analysis of the development and how it affects the demand for products within the construction sector.

In addition, more detailed presentations of de-velopment within each of the business areas were given. Positive reports were presented concern-ing, for example, the Ventilation business area’s new production plant in St. Petersberg. There was also an update on Profile’s current investment in their new production plant just outside Moscow, featured previously in Lindab Direct. Relocation of the work in the Yaroslavl region has led to some delays, but the management feels that this will not affect its investment goals.

Lots of positive news at the capital market day

The capital market day on September 12 was marked by a flow of positive information and congenial compa-ny. In addition to Lindab’s own representatives, there were some 50 analysts, investors, and economic journal-ists present at the event held in the Lindab Hall in Grevie.

On 1 October 2007, Lindab acquired the lead-ing supplier of products and services for ventilation systems in Ireland, Aervent Group. The company focuses on the commercial construction market and achieved a turnover of €12 million during the 12-month period ending 30 June 2007. Aervent Group has about 30 employees and its offices are located in Dublin and Cork.

Ireland is the fastest growing economy in Western Europe with an annual growth forecast in the commercial construction market of around 10 %. “We are delighted to enter the Irish market, which is a new market for us,” says Kjell Åkes-son, CEO, Lindab Group. “This deal represents yet another step in our strategy to accelerate growth in the circular duct business outside of the Nordic countries and it strengthens our position in Western Europe.”

Aervent Group is committed to meeting the various needs and demands of both consultants and ventilation installers and offers a comprehen-sive range of products and system solutions within the HVAC (Heating Ventilation Air Conditioning) sector. Lindab sees good opportunities for exploit-ing the resulting synergy effects. “Aervent has an excellent reputation for its expertise and customer service. Our plan is to build on this and add the range of Lindab’s flagship products,” says Hannu Paitula, Business Area Manager, Ventilation.

Lindab acquires Irish Aervent

Hannu Paitula, Business Area Manager, Ventilation, and John Kennedy, CEO at Aervent, are both very positive about Lindab's acquisition of the Irish ventilation distributor.

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Share and stock market informationLindab Direct December 2007

Continued strong growth during the third quarter

Lindab’s interim report for the third quar-ter was released on 25 October and revealed con-tinued positive growth. “After our previous quarterly report (Q2), certain questions arose concerning the rate of development within the Building Systems Di-vision. We put this down to the usual delays that of-ten arise during building projects and declared that the situation should return to normal during Q3/Q4,” says Nils-Johan Andersson, CFO at Lindab. “Our third quarter report confirms that this was indeed the case as we can report a sales increase of 21 % in CEE/CIS during this quarter compared to the same period in 2006.”

The most recent interim report shows strong organic growth for the entire business. “We have increased our net sales by 22 %,” continues Nils-Johan Andersson. “If we exclude the acquisitions of CCL Veloduct in the UK and Airbat in France, this gives an organic growth of 13 %, a figure we are very satisfied with. We can see further growth in Central and Eastern Europe, Western Europe and in the Nordic countries.”

The continued positive growth in CEE/CIS has also led to the decision to invest in a new produc-tion facility for the Building Components Division in the Ukraine. “With Lindab Ventilation’s new facility in St. Petersburg and the current investment be-ing made in a new Building Systems facility outside Moscow, the group is strengthening its position in these areas of growth,” says Nils-Johan Anders-son. “We estimate production in the new Ukrainian factory to commence during the second quarter of 2009. This investment is in the region of SEK 50 million and is being made in a construction market that, according to external analysts, will grow by over 14-15 % annually.”

The Profile business area continues to im-prove its margins and growth continues to thrive, while the Ventilation business area also shows signs

of solid development and good volume growth. “However, certain disruptions in production have occurred during the quarter, partly as a result of having to adjust to the Lindab Safe Click system and partly due to an increase in focus on the core product, ADS. This has resulted in minor delays in delivery, but is something that has been brought under control since the middle of October. It has, however, necessitated increased costs through overtime, which has influenced Ventilation’s results and diminished the margin by roughly 1 percentage point.”

Development within both business areas, particularly Ventilation, has been very good in the UK. “The loss carry forward from Lindab’s previous activities in this market could be taken into account during this quarter, lowering the Group’s tax costs by approx. SEK 30 million,” continues Nils-Johan Andersson. “This means that our tax rate dropped from 26 % to 18 % during the quarter.”

Cash flow has improved since last year, but stock levels remain somewhat high. Cash flow is expected to improve yet further during the fourth quarter through a series of measures implemented to reduce stock levels. “The revision to one of the Group’s financial targets – increased EBIT margin from 12 % to 14 % – was announced during the Capital Market Day,” concludes Nils-Johan Anders-son. “A greater focus on our core products, our attractive geographical positions and continued ac-curate market assessments will positively influence profitability over the coming years. For this reason, we have already chosen to increase the Group’s margin targets after barely one year on the stock market.”

Key figures 2007Interim report Jan-Sept 2007(same period previous year in brackets)

Net sales SEKm 6 795 (5 457) + 25 %Operating profit (EBITA) SEKm 939 (653) + 44 %Operating margin (EBITA) 13,8 % (12,0 %)Operating profit after tax SEKm 654 (460)Cash flow SEKm 264 (243)

Share value as of at 31 October 2007 SEKm 15 663

2008 calendarAnnual report (Jan-Dec 07) 12 February, 2008Interim report (Jan-Mar) 7 May, 2008Annual meeting 7 May, 2008Interim report (Jan-June) 17 July, 2008

Lindab share

1/12 2006 Introduktion

110,00

2/4 2007 2/7 2007 2/10 2007

183,00

1/12 2006index=100

Lindabaktien OMX

143

115

166

117

157,00

197,00

179

118

In this issue of Lindab Direct, ABG Sundal Collier and Swedbank have chosen to add a few comments relating to Lindab’s development during the autumn.

“The most important piece of information in the Q3 report, was that growth in Eastern Europe has now returned to normal,” says Tobias Ot-tosson, Analyst at ABG Sundal Collier. “It’s a relief that this element of concern was only temporary. The actual margins were somewhat worse than what we had expected, but these can be explained by the additional costs that arose in connection with new product launches. Taking this into consideration, we can see that the margins are in line with our expectations. The new products, Lindab Safe Click and RdBX, reinforce our impres-sion of an extremely well-run company offering cutting-edge products. We believe that Lindab, with its presence in Eastern Europe, will experience strong growth for a long time to come. Lindab’s presentation during the Capital Market Day about the huge potential that exists for the Ventilation business area in the Russian market both surprised and delighted us.”

Jon Hyltner, Analyst at Swedbank, considers the underlying factors to be very posi-tive. “Lindab’s presence in Eastern Europe creates good conditions for stable structural growth,” he says. “In many respects, we see the company’s products as superior to those of the competition. We believe that the new Click products will give Lindab increased market share. In addition, contin-ued market growth in circular duct systems gives Lindab excellent opportunities to acquire greater market share through its strong position in ADS. We can now see how capacity is being increased in Russia and the Ukraine, meaning that the huge demand from these growth markets can be met even better. This enables excellent capitalisation of these markets.”

Positive analysts

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In brief Lindab Direct December 2007

With an order value equivalent to just over SEK 70 million, Lindab Romania has not only won an order that dramatically increases local turnover. It has also succeeded bringing home Lindab's larg-est single order ever. “The order relates to deliveries of Lindab Systemline products to one of Croatia's leading grocery chains, Plodine, which currently has 62 supermarkets spread around the country,” explains Sasa Kolaric who, together with Dubravko Domacinoivic, is responsible for the deal. “It is a system delivery that basically comprises LVP2 con-struction plates for the facades, LTP85 high pro-files for the roof, as well as RFLEX spacer battens along with insulation, mounting materials, etc.” The building installer Izokom's assignment includes the renovation of 11 existing supermarkets, on which for example roofs and facades are to be replaced. In addition, just over 50 new supermarkets are to be constructed for Plodine, 26 in 2008 and the remain-der in 2009.

“We completed the first delivery during the summer,” explains Sasa Kolaric. “This involved the renovation and extension of an existing supermar-ket measuring 1,600 m2. Izokom and Plodine were both more than happy with our solution as it meant that the assembly time could be reduced by just over 10 days. They also praised our rapid and ac-curate deliveries, as well as the quality and finish of our products. A few days after completion we re-ceived a telephone call from Dozi Heberling, Director of Plodine, who wondered if we wanted to take on responsibility for deliveries for the remain shop com-plexes – more than 60 in all.” Eleven of the existing stores have now been renovated.

Plodine, which currently holds approximately 8 % of the Croatian grocery market, is undergoing rapid expansion. Today's 30 or so supermarkets will have grown to more than 100 within two years. “We are investing heavily in high quality and a wide range of fresh food within our meat, fruit, vegetable

and bread aisles,” explains Dozi Heberling, Direc-tor of Plodine. “Of course, our focus on quality also extends to our choice of supplier, and when Izokom proposed Lindab, their product range, quality and expertise appeared to be very competitive. We are very satisfied with the deliveries that Lindab has completed to date, in terms of their product quality, delivery reliability and, of course, the shorter con-struction time that Lindab's solution entails. All of this is providing us with the cost-effectiveness we are constantly striving to achieve.”

“Working with Lindab means that complaints are basically eliminated,” say Mario Koic and Sandra Bogdanovic Koic, who represent both the manage-ment and the owners of Izokom. “Their logistics are also first-class, making the time-pressured instal-lation process much easier. Lindab's system also offers the flexibility and simplicity that are required for the numerous assignments we now have ahead of us.”

Record order for Croatian grocery chain

The picture above shows Mario Koic and Sandra Bogdanovic Koic from Izokom, together with Sasa Kolaric from Lindab, in front of Plodine's super-market in Marinici, the first delivery in the extensive order.

The picture to the left shows what the future Plodine stores will look like, with facades, roofs and entrance roofs made of Lindab construction plates, mounted on RFLEX facade renovation battens.

To date, no fewer than 30,000 companies in Eu-rope have opted for buildings from Lindab-Astron. “A beneficial cost scenario and fast, efficient assembly that reduces the tying up of capital are certainly im-portant advantages of the steel building solutions we supply,” explains David Brodetsky, Divisional Manag-er at Building Systems. “However, the environmental benefits of steel have become the focus of greater attention, as companies are increasingly evaluating their investments from an environmental perspective. This trend definitely seems set to continue.”

Steel is not only an excellent construction ma-terial that provides considerable opportunities from both a structural engineering and an architectonic perspective. It can also be fully recycled and does not give off any harmful emissions throughout its product cycle. “This, together with the fact that Lind-ab-Astron's steel frames are pretty much exclusively painted with water-based paint, as well as the good transport economy resulting from the low volume

that steel facilitates, results in a reduced impact on the environment compared to many other traditional construction systems,” continues David Brodetsky. “By providing the steel with excellent surface protec-tion, we also achieve a very long service life, which in turn reduces energy consumption through longer re-construction and renovation intervals. It is pleasing to know that, with our product Astron, we can contrib-ute to environmentally positive alternatives that meet the market's increasing environmental requirements.”

Furthermore Lindab-Astron is enhancing its Cyprion software. Earlier this year, a feature was in-troduced that allows Builders to calculate the energy saving payback of using thicker insulation. ”In early 2008, we plan to introduce a ’Heat-loss’ module so that Builders can automatically simulate the heat bal-ance in a proposed building. This takes into account the many characteristics of the building, such as wall and roof solutions and insulation thickness, types of windows and glazing, lighting, ventilation & heating

systems etc,” concludes David Brodetsky. ”It will al-low the Builder to compare the results to the statu-tory DIN requirement, and will allow Builders in other countries to be one step ahead of their competition.”

Environmental awareness benefits Astron steel building systems

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The most recent product launch by Lindab Comfort, the Plexus chilled beam, draws little attention to itself and its quite revo-lutionary functionality. Yet that is exac-tly what lies discretely behind the quiet facade. Plexus, as we briefly mentioned in the last issue of Lindab Direct, is the first model of 3rd generation of chilled beam and stands alone in the market for provi-ding 360° distribution – the most natural and optimal distribution pattern for venti-lation, cooling and heating.

“What we think of as modern induction baf-fles or beams first saw the light of day in the mid 90s,” says Göran Hultmark, R&D Manager for Lindab Comfort, and the person behind the development of Plexus. “By using this technique, we were able to use the ventilation air in the room to recirculate the air in a room and through this provide cooling or heating much more effec-tively and with lower energy consumption than previously.” The technique is based on cool or warm water being supplied to the cell lying inside the beam. Air from the room passes through this

cell, and through induction, the cooling or heat-ing effect is multiplied so that, for example, an air supply of 20 l/s (from the duct) is converted to the equivalent of 100 l/s (from the duct and the room). When the air is blown out through the cell’s tiny nozzles it induces, or draws with it, the air in the room, which then circulates.

It is the same basic principle that allows a sailing boat to sail against the wind. The sys-tem requires no electrical supply, simply an air duct and the water supply loop. “This makes it possible to ventilate at 20 l/s, but cool or heat at 100 l/s,” explains Göran Hultmark. “A consider-able saving, naturally, compared to previous sys-tems where it was necessary to supply 100 l/s of cooled or heated air. These required larger scale air duct systems and used more energy.”

Portula, which was launched around 1995, was Lindab’s first induction beam and had a long narrow cell with straight nozzles on each side. “This had some induction benefits, but it also required long jet streams to push the air out into the room,” continues Göran Hultmark. The problem with long jet streams, i.e. the airflow out

from the chilled beam itself, is that it results in high speed. High speed airflow is what we more commonly call a “draft”, and even if the draft cre-ated by Portula was minimal, with the low cooling effects available at that time it was, neverthe-less, an undesirable characteristic. A comfortable indoor climate should be precisely that, comfort-able.

“Consequently further development was needed and Professor followed at the end of the 1990s, with which we began to distribute air in a fan-shaped pattern. This was achieved by pointing the nozzles in different directions, which angled out the distribution and allowed for a reduction in flow rate of about 50 %,” says Göran Hultmark. “Through a series of tests in our airflow laboratory, we were able to find what we then felt was the optimal distribution pat-tern. This meant that the cooling effect could be increased without creating a draft. Subsequently, in 2004, we introduced the Pilot chilled beam that provided variable air volume, still via both sides of the long, narrow cell. This made it possible for the installation technician to set the distribution pattern to suit the needs of the room.”

FOCUS Lindab launches Plexus, the 3rd generation of chilled beams

WHERE First Sweden, then Scandinavia

WHO Lindab Comfort

The circle is often adopted by nature in its ingenious construction work. When Lindab wanted to solve some of the problems involving chilled beams, the circle was used as a starting point. The result was Plexus, a totally new chilled beam that can justifiably be called natural.

Natural solutions

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None of these three products however, were capable of distributing air on the broadest possible front. “The situation of course, is that the broader the distribution front, the calmer, slower moving and better mixed the cooled, fresh air that floats down into the room,” Göran Hultmark explains. “With Plexus we are now unique in providing a chilled beam that creates the broadest and most natural distribution pat-tern possible, namely 360°. This totally circular distribution pattern, with no need for long jet streams, mixes the air in the room perfectly. The end result then is the optimal climate with no draft.”

Plexus spreads the temperate air in a sun-flower pattern via nozzles sitting in top of its cell. Depending on the model, Plexus can supply between 12 and 50 l/s. The much shortened jet length not only reduces the draft to an almost immeasurable level, it also means that the cool-ing effect can be enhanced by increasing the number of beams. This would previously have resulted in a very noticeable increase in draft, but not any more, even with more closely placed units. Plexus is delivered with factory set air-

flow and pressure values, which ensures quick installation and start-up and it is also possible, if required, to customize the distribution pat-tern to suit the room, by blocking some of the nozzles. None of our competitors can today sup-ply a beam with equal performance. It’s closest rival, for example, has a jet stream length that is almost twice as long as for Plexus.

Ever more focus is being placed on hygiene when it comes to ventilation systems, air terminal devices and chilled beams. Lindab’s new duct system, Lindab Safe Click, has the advantage of being completely smooth on the inside, which considerably simplifies maintenance and clean-ing. “When we developed Plexus, hygiene was one of our main considerations,” adds Göran Hultmark. “We are, once again, alone in provid-ing a system in which each part can be easily cleaned. This feature is, moreover, now a require-ment in Sweden as a result of the obligatory ventilation control (OVK). The system requires regular cleaning, and failure to do this can have extreme consequences for the function of the baffles. Cleaning must therefore be quick and

easy to do. Dust or other particles that get stuck in the nozzles can damage the whole function and in the worst scenario, it may be necessary to replace an entire beam. The easy cleaning of Plexus overcomes this problem!

Plexus was launched on October 15 in Sweden, and will be followed by successive intro-duction throughout the whole of Europe at the beginning of January 2008. The standard Plexus version is suitable for 90 % of the ceilings on the market and is best controlled using Lindab’s room regulator, Regula. Plexus is available in two unit sizes, 600 x 600 mm and 600 x 1200 mm, and is ready for both cooling and heating on delivery.

Read more at www.lindabcomfort.com

Previous chilled beams were marked by a limited distribution pattern, which gave rise to long jet streams and therefore draft. Further development improved the distribution pattern, but it is only now with the new Plexus chilled beam that the natural and optimal 360° distribution pattern has been obtained.

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The Plexus chilled beam provides an optimal distribution pattern of 360° and with it a draft free, perfectly moderated indoor climate combined with easy installation, start-up and cleaning.

Natural solutions


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WHAT Distribution of Lindab’s building components to Russia

CUSTOMER United Trading Systems Scandinavia

WHO Lindab Sweden

Exciting Russian trip for UTS

and Lindab

Lindab is focusing more and more on the markets of Central and Eastern Europe. This development started in the early 1990s, gradually intensified towards the end of the decade and has really blos-somed in recent years. Within the Profile business area, and what has now become the Building Components Division, the focus of market development has been more on the Central European markets such as Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Romania. But, more and more customers now have access to Lindab’s solutions in Russia too. Only a few important distributors have played a very large role here. One of these is the Swedish-Russian company UTS.

UTS, United Trading Systems, or ETC as it is written in Cyrillic, conducts its marketing entirely in Russian, a clear expression of the compa-ny’s sole focus on Russia. UTS was founded in 1994 and consists of two areas, construction and chemistry. “When it comes to building products, Lindab has played a central role in our product range since the beginning and is our single most important supplier within this part of the busi-ness,” explains Lars Hjorth, Commercial Director at United Trading Systems Scandinavia, which is the company’s full name. “Today, Lindab’s com-plete range of building components, apart from garage doors, can be found in our product range.”

1994 may not seem a very long time ago compared to Western norms, but from a Russian perspective, a company with over 13 years of his-tory is an old company. In the case of UTS, it is also a very well respected and well-known com-pany. “When we first established this Swedish-Russian distribution company of ours, the market there looked totally different,” continues Lars

Hjorth. “Russia lacked distributors for foreign brands and we saw the opportunity to build a new business that would fill this void. We had kept a close eye on Lindab’s activities in other parts of the East and realised early on that when the Russian market was ready to adopt new Western product solutions and methods, the demand would probably be huge.”

Lindab’s products were the first Western prod-ucts to be sold by UTS on the Russian market in the middle of the 1990s. “Most Western compa-nies were afraid to enter Russia, with the greatest fear revolving around the risk of not being paid,” says Lars Hjorth. “We chose to take a different route. We told them about our plans, our knowledge of and contacts on the Russian market, but above all, we stated that we wanted to pay for the deliv-eries in Swedish Kronor in Sweden. Naturally, more suppliers became interested in cooperation, but the reason why Lindab became responsible for the largest part of our building product range was different. Right from the start, Lindab gave us support and backing, effectively making the decision for us.” Lars Hjorth and his Russian business part-ner, Andrey Shkola, basically saw themselves as shopkeepers who had discovered a good business opportunity. “From day one, our overall objec-

tive was to sell these products. And when I say sell, I mean with a big ‘S’. The only problem was that our knowledge about how building products should be used had the odd gap here and there,” says Lars Hjorth smiling. “And since the knowl-edge in the Russian market about how these systems should be applied, assembled and utilised was almost non-existent, UTS reached the deci-sion to implement a strategy that would later prove to be spot on.

“We set up our own on site architecture and design department in St. Petersburg and tried

to gather as much knowledge and competence as pos-sible,” continues Lars Hjorth. “As a result of our new cooperation with Lindab, we were able to visit Lindab in Förslöv and learn about how to utilise the new lightweight building technology. We also learned how Lindab’s roof drain-age system, structural steel sheeting and other product systems

would be able to simplify Russian construction and make it more effective. After that, we were allowed to build a demo hall out of steel, con-structed using products from Lindab and other suppliers, just next to St. Petersburg airport. Shortly thereafter, in connection with a Russian building conference, the Russian Construction Minister paid us an unexpected visit, declaring frankly that ‘this was the only piece of innovation that he had seen within the Russian construction industry in a long time.’ This summed up every-


Today, Lindab’s products, Lindab Rainline in particular, are stocked and sold in about 50 Russian DIY chain stores.

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thing about the domestic construction industry.”This important work resulted in a number of

projects for local construction companies where the material was purchased directly by the con-struction manager. “As design and planning was cost-free, we could secure a number of differ-ent jobs. What is more, we were actually further ahead than Lindab when it came to utilising their lightweight building technology, all thanks to the training and knowledge we had gained from them. This naturally benefited both us and Lindab since it resulted in an increase in sales.”

In 2005, UTS closed down their design and planning department, barely 10 years after the work had started. “We did this for the simple reason that the Russian market had matured into a more Western style of market with new efficient distri-bution channels, wide-spread building trade and a substantial increase in know-how amongst the end-users. If we were to continue in our original direction, based on direct marketing to the end-user, we would have competed with our new building customers.”

Today, UTS can be found in St. Petersburg, Moscow, Yekaterinburg and Novosibirsk, as well as the Ukraine and Kazakstan. “12 of our 21 building dealerships are completely focused on Lindab’s product range,” says Lars Hjorth. “It could quite easily be said that these days we focus on selling the Lindab brand, something we do in cooperation with Lindab in Sweden. We

have several competitive advantages. We have established our own highly skilled team that has proved to be very successful on the Russian market. Our collaboration with Lindab, that we see more as a partnership than a customer/sup-plier relationship, has enabled us to provide competitive service and support to our custom-ers. Naturally, Lindab’s product range, which has gained an excellent reputation here due to its quality, breadth and unique benefits, is also a key competitive advantage. It should also not be forgotten that Lindab is associated with Sweden, which has a very positive impact and something

we obviously exploit.”

Lindab Rainline constitutes the largest share of the SEK 20 million UTS spends on Lindab products annually. Originally, the focus was very much on Construline, but Rainline is cur-rently the most popu-lar product group. “I believe that this can be explained to a large

extent by the new struc-ture of the market,” says Zacharias Fransson, Sales Manager and Key Account Manager for UTS at Lindab. “Today, there is an extensive network of retailers and building markets in the well-developed parts of the country, something that did not exist in the 1990s. Since Rainline is a product for which availability and maintain-ing stock levels are key, then it is also a typical product for the building market. I believe that this fact greatly contributed to Rainline’s strong upsurge. As Lars says, it has had a lot to do with

selling the brand, the concept of Swedish qual-ity and UTS's excellent support and service. Now, we are gradually focusing more on the benefits relating to the assembly and operation of the systems. The many seminars that UTS has arranged for its retailers, where Lindab has attended to present the company and its systems, have played an important role in promoting sales of UTS and Lindab solutions.

During 2007, Lindab’s campaign “Give your house a facelift” went out to retailers. “What happens now is that we appoint a number of regional managers for the Russian market. Their task is to create and develop a string of contacts between retailers/building markets and our distributors, of which UTS is clearly the most important,” continues Zacharias Fransson. “Lindab shall be on hand and make the first contact with the customers before handing over to UTS, who will take over and continue to man-age the business cooperation with the retailers.”

This form of cooperation, which builds on proximity, efficiency and flexibility, has gradu-ally been formed and established between UTS and Lindab. “Together, we can act very quickly, take advantage of the situation on the Russian market and offer Russian retailers benefits such as fast, secure deliveries, local storage and excel-lent service and technical support,” concludes Lars Hjorth. “Today, we sell to over 50 retailers with close to 80 stores, some of which belong to chains. The increase in Russian spending power and an improved standard of living is now driv-ing sales, and I believe that a sales increase of approximately 50 % during 2008 is very pos-sible.”

UTS, United Trading System (ETC in Cyrillic), is the predominant Russian distributor of Lindab’s building component products. Today, UTS is a fully-fledged distributor of Western brands and, since being established in 1994, has had Lindab as its most important partner within its building components business area. The picture to the right shows (from the left) Egor Efremov-Sheremetev, Director Building Components UTS and Andrey Shkola, CEO at UTS.

Lindab’s additional building extension product, Construline, was the central Lindab product in UTS's product range for a long time. This position has now been taken over by Rainline.

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NIBE is a Swedish listed company that manufactu-res heating installations and is a market leader in Scandinavia, Poland and the Czech Republic. It is best known for its household heating products such as heat pumps, water heaters and domestic boilers. In addition to its Domestic heating business area, NIBE has two others. The second largest is Element, which manufactures systems and components for electrical heating. The third area is one that is probably least associated with NIBE, but which most Swedes would recognise through the trademarks Handöl, Contura and Cronspisen. Indeed, NIBE's third business area produces wood-burning stoves and tiled ovens, which during 2006 accounted for 28 % of the operating pro-fit from just 18 % of the total turnover. This is one reason why NIBE is now building a completely new production unit for wood-burning stoves in Markaryd, Sweden. The 3.7 km long duct system from Lindab has been installed by Hallands Vent & Plåt.

NIBE Stoves has enjoyed good economic growth over the past year, particularly in the home market and in Norway and Denmark. Now the attention is on the export markets such as Germany and France. When it was judged that demand would continue to be high, not least because of the big interest in energy saving products for the individual home, a decision was taken in 2005 to build a completely new production plant in Markaryd for the Handöl and Contura lines. Markaryd is not only the home of NIBE – the head office is situated there – it is also the location of two large NIBE production units, one of which is for stoves.

“The group’s decision to invest in an additional production unit for stoves will double our capacity within that business area. The plant will also contain a large distribution ware-house,” says Jan-Erik Svensson, Property Manager for NIBE in Markaryd, referring to the 25,000 m2 unit which should become operational during the second quarter of 2008. “Everything is going according to plan and as usual, Hallands Vent & Plåt has done an excellent job. This will increase our production area in Markaryd from 75,000 m2 to 100,000 m2, which will make it one of our largest individual production facilities.” The main building was erected at the end of 2006 and the contract for the ventilation work was signed in March 2007.

Hallands Vent & Plåt has at most had six technicians on site, working on the installation of the 3,700 m of circular ducts. In addition to the mainly 630 mm and 800 mm diameter ducts, Lindab also supplied a large quantity of duct components, silencers, shutters etc. “In the fan rooms, which are among the biggest installations I have ever worked on, there are 1,000 mm diameter ducts,” explains Nils-Arne Gustavsson, the on-site foreman for Hallands Vent & Plåt. “The actual duct system is quite normal even if its size is exceptional. The only differ-ence between this and a normal delivery is that we chose to use six-metre long sections wherever possible, as this halves the number of connections, resulting in easier, quicker installa-tion.” The order was handled by Lindab Halmstad, but all the deliveries went directly from Lindab Ventilation in Grevie in what is called ‘capped form’.

“As always, Lindab has provided excellent service and sup-port,” says Peter Andersson, CEO for Hallands Vent & Plåt, who has worked with Lindab throughout the 11 years of his company’s existence. “There were some late deliveries just after the holiday period, but this was very unusual. Normally they are a reliable supplier that make well scheduled deliveries.”

Kenneth Lennartsson, Production Manager for Lindab responds, “Yes, we had a rush of orders during the summer, which on that occasion unfortunately led to some delays. This was because the regular staff had not yet returned, and one of our suppliers failed to provide us with sufficient materials. The situation has now been rectified, and today we have no diffi-culties meeting the delivery times.”

Stoves are NIBE’s third business area with the trademarks Handöl, Contura and Cronspisen.

Photo © NIBE 2007

Cooling duct system for red hot production

A Lindab duct system with 630 mm and 800 mm ducts dominates the

ceiling of the new NIBE production plant for stoves in Markaryd.

The fan room contains Lindab 1,000 mm diameter ducts. Tough jobs demand extreme measures.

WHAT Supply of the duct system for NIBE’s new stove production plant

CUSTOMER Hallands Vent & Plåt

WHO Lindab Sweden


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A coin has two sides, as everyone knows – heads and tails. And just as we can only see one side of the coin at a time, Lindab has also long been viewed from two dif-ferent sides – the Profile business area and Ventilation business area. It is true that the product systems offered by the two business areas are targeted at differ-ent customer groups with different needs. But every rule has its exceptions. When the Building Systems division sat down to analyse synergies between Lindab's divisions and business areas in terms of sales, it opened the door to some inter-esting opportunities. Opportunities that have now started to become visible in earnest within the sales figures.

Extensive integration work was carried out during 2006 and 2007 in order to combine Astron and Lindab Building Systems into a single, co-operative unit. “In conjunction with this work, we listed a number of activities that would strengthen and improve our offers to our customers, Astron Builders,” explains Venant Krier, responsible for Sales & Marketing at the Building Systems division. “We soon realised that by making better use of Lindab's potential, we could provide an even more complete delivery to those customers who wanted it. The inclusion of product systems from the Building Components division, such as lightweight building systems, steel decking, roof drainage systems and doors, was no great leap. However, many steel build-ings also require ventilation systems, and as we are very well equipped in this area, we decided to utilise this opportunity as well. The result has been that a number of Astron deliveries have not only included the steel building itself, but also

everything from complete ventilation systems to industrial doors, steel decking and lightweight building systems.”

Faurecia is an international subcontractor to the world's automotive industry, and their seats, doors, dashboards, exhaust systems, etc., can be found in everything from Dodges, Fords and Chryslers to BMWs, Volvos and Audis. The French-owned Faurecia Group, which has 60,000 employees, is one of the world's leading companies in this sector, with 180 production plants in more than 28 countries.

“Faurecia has been one of our custom-ers for many years and we have supplied them with a number of steel buildings,” continues Venant Krier. “ The most recent Astron delivery to Faurecia, which comprised three production plants totalling 40,000 m2 at their site in Písek, in the Czech Republic, also incorporated a complete ventilation system including ducts, components and fan units. The result was a completely inte-grated solution where, with the aid of our own IT tools and Lindab's CADvent, we were able to relieve the customer of all the bother of co-ordi-nating and planning both the building and the entire duct system.”

“We have enjoyed a long, healthy relation-ship with Astron, and have very positive experi-ences of their rapid, secure deliveries of steel buildings,” says Michel Jaulin, who is responsible for the Faurecia Group's construction projects. “Following Lindab's acquisition of Astron, we can now see that even more customer benefits have been generated. The more complete a solu-tion is, the better it is for us as a customer. The fact that Astron was now able to present a solu-tion that also incorporated the complete ventila-tion system meant that we avoided having to per-

form this co-ordination work ourselves, as well as reducing the number of supplier contacts. There is no doubt that this provides us with a more sim-plified process flow.” The assembly of the steel building itself was undertaken by the Astron Builder Simont, while the ventilation system was installed by Uniblock, one of Lindab Ventilation's customers in the Czech Republic.

“The delivery to Faurecia's unit in the Czech Republic is perhaps the clearest example of a delivery whereby we have very tangibly simpli-fied the customer's procurement, planning and construction processes,” continues Venant Krier, “although it is definitely not the only example. We can also see that this trend is now continuing.”

Through extended collaboration between Astron's customers and Lindab Ventilation's cus-tomers, it has been possible to realise a number of projects involving several of Lindab's product groups. Three Astron deliveries to Poland have also included a ventilation system, and a similar collaboration has also taken place in Romania. “It is clear that co-ordination and network build-ing are important, as can be seen from one of the Polish deliveries. This related to an order from the Dutch company Kentel, which had recently erected a plant in Poland through the local Astron dealer Sezup,” continues Venant Krier. “Kentel is actually a customer of the Swiss

Astron deliveries with simplified customer solutions from both of Lindab's business areas

WHAT Extended Astron deliveries through added Lindab products

CUSTOMER Astron dealers and Astron key-accounts

WHERE Europe

Lindab2


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Faurecia is one of the world's leading subcontractors to the automotive industry. Over a number of years, Astron has supplied steel buildings to their units in countries such as the UK, France, the Czech Republic and Poland. The most recent delivery to Faurecia in the Czech Republic differed from earlier deliveries in that, for the first time, it also included a complete Lindab ventilation system.

Lindab company Spiro. Our extensive European presence is significantly increasing our potential to do both good business and to simplify the con-struction process.”

The Building Components division also sup-plies a wide range of products that are well suited for use in Astron buildings. At the foot of Lalla Khadija, a mountain in eastern Algeria, the food company Cevital has recently erected a plant measuring just over 34,000 m2 for the bottling and distribution of mineral water. This Astron delivery has been supplemented with 32 industrial doors from the Lindab Doorline product range.

The same applies to a similar key-account delivery to a Russian float glass factory meas-uring 60,000 m2 in Ryazan. “We were able to supplement the Astron building with 21 Lindab Doorline doors for this customer as well, the American company Guardian, one of the world's largest float glass producers,” concludes Venant Krier. “The fact that we were able to make this, our seventh delivery to Guardian, even more complete shows that the proper utilisation of Group synergies genuinely provides customer benefits – fewer suppliers to co-ordinate and a

simplified process. And this applies from procure-ment all the way through to completion.”

For the Logistic City logistics centre in Warsaw, Poland, the Astron customer Skalski elected to propose Lindab's high profile construc-tion plates LTP115 and LTP150 for the roof of the 60,000 m2 Astron building.

The product area Construline, which includes various systems for lightweight building in steel, constitutes a fourth group of products that are

well suited to integration in a steel building deliv-ery. The Astron Builder, Directline Structures, has used Lindab's steel girders to create lightweight floors in the three-storey school building supplied to Wilmington School in Kent, in the UK. This has provided the end customer, Kent County Council, with a new school building that could be built at a significantly lower overall cost than any previous project.


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“There is a traditional model which describes a comfortable indoor climate as the intersection between a pleasant temperature, a healthy relative humid-ity and no disturbing draft,” says Allan E. Jørgensen, who is responsible for Lindab’s acoustic concept. “For a long time, we have insisted that there is a further, crucial component to consider with respect to a comfortable, healthy indoor climate, namely sound. This has a considerable effect on our wellbeing, as long as it is sound that we want to or need to hear. We don't however, consider that the sound of a ventilation system belongs grouping this category.” Lindab is certainly not the only company voicing this opinion, but there are very few com-panies in the ventilation industry making a real effort to solve the issue of sound pollution.

A ventilation system is not only a fantastic instrument for providing fresh, temperate air with the correct humidity. Unfortunately, it is also an “instrument” that spreads low frequency sound from fans, in addition to airflow sounds from shutters and bends and finally those noises from the room next door, above or below. “This is why a coordinated effort is needed to deal with this sound issue in the best possible way,” adds Allan E. Jørgensen. “We could, like many others of course, have contented ourselves with produc-ing simple silencers, but this has never been our approach. Instead, for many years now, we have not only had one of the broadest ranges of ven-tilation system silencers on the market, we have also worked hard at providing complete ventila-

tion solutions with which just as much attention is paid to the acoustics as to the temperature and other more obvious parameters.”

In recent years Lindab has delivered ventila-tion systems for such demanding acoustic projects as the new Copenhagen Opera House, DR Byen’s new premises for Danish TV and radio, and Aarhus Music House. “In all of these projects we have used our own – which is incidentally also northern Europe’s largest – sound laboratory, our own software, for example, DIMsilencer and Room-to-room and not least the expertise that we have built up over the years,” continues Allan E. Jørgensen. “It’s because we can combine these attributes that we can offer optimally dimen-sioned and documented ventilation solutions that satisfy our hearing as well as our other senses.”

Lindab’s sound laboratory in Farum is used for full-scale tests in connection with demanding ventilation projects, and as an important facility for internal product development. One of the most recent developments is Silent Duct, a dou-ble skinned tube with acoustic insulation. This has played a significant role in the complete ventila-tion and acoustic solution that Lindab Denmark recently delivered to Bravida in Aarhus for their Monorama project.

For a long time, Aarhus municipality has had a waiting list of musicians requiring good qual-ity practice rooms. “Now we have 42 completely new rooms in a fantastic environment,” says Lene Ethelberg, who is responsible for Monorama, the municipality’s new music studio, housed in a former fire brigade museum. The house contains 42 practice rooms each of 30 m2 as well as com-mon rooms covering a total of 2,500 m2.

“The music rooms are built as small, insulated cabins completely separate from each other,” explains Per Holm at Bravida Aarhus, who were responsible for the ventilation work. “Strict sound requirements were placed on both fan units and silencers, and in general with regard to the trans-mission of sound between the various rooms. To meet these demands and eliminate the risk of sound being carried through the duct system, we chose to use Lindab’s new sound dampened Silent Duct. The sound calculations carried out by Lindab, which included the use of their Room-to-room algorithm, allowed us to quickly and easily dimension the complete system. Aarhus munici-pality is very satisfied with the sound dampened VAV solution which was supplied in five sections. Furthermore it is aesthetically very attractive, which is important as most of the system is vis-ible.” Apart from 200/50 mm Silent Ducts, Lindab supplied the unit silencers, shutters and other details.

In 2008 there is going to be a lot of talk about Lindab's acoustic solutions. “Next year there will be some serious promotion of our products, solu-tions and expertise, in European markets,” says Allan E. Jørgensen, by way of conclusion. “This will not only entail an extensive marketing cam-paign for our silencers and Silent Duct, but also with regard to the introduction of completely new, interesting sound products; solutions that combine optimal acoustic function with simplified installation.”

Sound – an indoor climate parameter to listen to and take seriously

Bravida Silent Ducts Aarhus Music House

WHAT A complete sound solution for the new Aarhus municipality music house

CUSTOMER Bravida, Aarhus

WHO Lindab Denmark


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“This project enabled Lindab to show its expertise and its inte-resting range of solutions within ventilation acoustics. It gave us, the customer and some 130 local groups, which are now training up their riffs in Monorama’s studios, a solution that met all the ventilation, aesthetic and acoustic demands.”

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What do you if you are on holiday, relax-ing, having a wonderful time, and having managed to put “work” to the back of your mind, when suddenly, an interesting notion springs to mind? If it is reasonably interest-ing, perhaps you would “file it” for a rainy day and get on with the holiday. If, how-ever, as in Niclas Ivarsson’s case, it is so incredibly interesting that you immediately long for your desk, computer, workmates and the lab, then there is only one thing to do. Enjoy the holiday later and, instead, focus your efforts on finding out just how interesting – and commercially viable – the idea actually is. That was the origin of Lindab’s new stud system, RdBX, which seizes upon the now well-known Lindab concept of solutions built with a ‘click’!

“We immediately saw the potential of Niclas Ivarsson’s idea and, after an intensive period of development, we were already able to hand in a patent application for the new RdBX stud in spring of this year. After that, we seriously got going with the project,” explains an extremely satisfied Johan Andersson, Product Manager for Construline. “In June, we followed up by conduct-ing a comprehensive marketing study in Sweden, Norway and Denmark, as well as the United Kingdom, Poland and Hungary. These markets have a wide range of local producers, the prod-ucts are basic and there is a big focus on price.

We wanted to analyse the market potential for a product that offered new, worthwhile qualities such as substantially reduced assembly times and improved assembly ergonomics. The result was very promising, with all the markets examined offering a good response. We have also carried out a number of external tests that provided very positive results emphasising the timesaving and ergonomic benefits. We predict this product will be a real door-opener to new Lindab markets. If there are no more Construline sales currently, then RdBX can provide new opportunities to introduce our ideas for simplified construction.”

The RdBX stud is based on a ‘click’ assembly function that locks the stud easily and effectively to a floor or ceiling runner. “RdBX reduces assembly times by approximately 50 %, since tools or screws are not needed. A blank outline in each end of the stud creates a flap that locks the stud when it is pressed down onto the runner,” explains Johan Andersson. The only thing that is needed is a spirit level, which is also required for fixing the stud or, if preferred, something else of similar length can be used to press down the flap. The metal flap is stamped in such a way that when it is pressed down onto the runner the stud expands and becomes pinched in the runner. “Although it is pinched, it can still move side-ways in order to adapt to the plasterboard. The advantage here is that when the plasterboards are to be fastened with screws, the ‘click’ locking

mechanism creates a very stable support,” con-tinues Johan Andersson. “The ‘click’ function on the RdBX stud also makes the telescopic function simpler – extend to the desired length and press the flap twice to fix the height – again without screws. This also means that telescopic versions can replace standard lengths, which are currently cut into sections on site. By choosing a length that is little more than half the height, it is possible to extend the studs telescopically to the desired height, instead of having to cut them. It is handy for renovation work and sloping ceilings.”

External analysts have estimated the European market value for partition wall stud systems to increase to approx. SEK 11 billion. “We believe that with our new RdBX stud we can increase our market shares substantially with-in this product area,” says Peter Andsberg. “Not only does this stud have the same good qualities as our previous products, it will also offer unique benefits in the form of fast, flexible assembly and superior ergonomics, and that makes us unique. All this leads us to believe strongly in this new product that we will be launching in earnest dur-ing Nordbygg 2008.”

Time-saving ‘click’ solutionLindab launches extremely easy-to-assemble stud system

WHAT RdBX, new time-saving stud system prepares for launch

WHERE Scandinavia and then Europe

WHO Profile Business Area

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Assembling the new RdBX stud takes half the time compared to conventional studs that require screws and tools and are far more complicated to assemble. RdBX is delivered with the sheet flap along with the stud. Press the flap down halfway at both ends, place the stud in the ceiling or floor runner and twist it easily into place. Press down the upper flap and then the lower one, using a spirit level for example, fixing the stud. When the plasterboards are fastened with screws, RdBX is easily adjustable sideways, while the ‘click’ assembly makes a stable support for fastening the plasterboards. The partition wall solution of the modern age is here!

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Click!

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A building is certainly more than just four walls and a roof. It is also an opportunity to creating a lasting value that combines good function with good economy. And in such a way that it appeals both to the eye and our aesthetic sense. Most of us would agree that some buildings allow function and attractive architecture to go hand in hand perfectly. We occasionally equate materials such as marble, granite and brick with structural beauty. However, steel also offers considerable opportuni-ties when it comes to aesthetic construc-tion. That is why, since 2002, Astron has hosted the “Astron Building of the Year” competition.

“It is well known that steel buildings offer benefits such as rapid assembly, good cost-effec-tiveness and considerable flexibility,” explains David Brodetsky, Divisional Manager at Building Systems. “We wanted to find new ways of com-municating the message that steel is also aes-thetically pleasing, which is why we launched the Astron Building of the Year competition.”

“The competition is held each year and consists of a number of qualification rounds,” explains Jutta Missal, who is responsible for the competition. “The contest is divided into two classes, SSB Single Storey Building and MSB Multi Storey Building. We select one Building of the Month each month from the SSB class, while the slightly smaller MSB class has to make do with quarterly qualifications. Both classes are based on the entries that our 30 or so district managers submit to the competition. In addi-

tion to these are the entries that our Astron Builders send in themselves. Unfortunately, not everyone is aware that our customers can also submit entries to the competition that they stand a chance of winning themselves. We hope to be able to change this so that we receive even more entries and greater customer involvement.”

The Lindab-Astron jury, consisting of David Brodetsky, Venant Krier and Hans Berger as well as six Business Unit Managers, gathers each month to reach a decision. “The jury selects three entries that it feels best satisfy the criterion 'good function in combination with good aesthetics and an interesting utilisation of the potential offered by steel build-ings' and ranks them into first, second and third place. The jury makes a corresponding assessment every quarter in the MSB class,” continues Jutta Missal. “The 12 monthly-winners in the SSB class and the 4 in the MSB class are then presented on our website and in our customer magazine EuroASTRONews. Finally we allow our Builders to elect the Astron SSB Building of the Year and Astron MSB Building of the Year.”

At this year's Lindab-Astron conference in Barcelona, David Brodetsky and Venant Krier announced the final two winners of Astron Building of the Year 2006. “The SSB class was won by our Builder Asenhajmer in Poland, who constructed a new ice hall for the Polish munici-pality of Elblag, close to the Baltic Sea,” contin-

ues Jutta Missal. “The architect Piotr Paldyna really succeeded in creating a building that, through accent colours, interesting materials and unexpected forms, perfectly blends the architec-ture and the building's load-bearing elements and structure. Through curves and curved forms, he has succeeded wonderfully in breaking up the straight steel forms.” In technical terms, the build-ing is an Astron AZM1 with a mezzanine floor, measuring 89 m in length and 52 m wide.

The winner in the MSB class was the entry from the Astron Builder MBS S.A. in Luxembourg. “It was a complete, turnkey solu-tion for their customer Cars Benelux, a local car

dealer that needed new, attractive showroom premises to promote sales. MBS S.A. has already sup-plied 250,000 m2 alongside Astron, so they are well acquainted with the possibilities that steel has to offer. Together with the architects Atelier Nord, they have created an exciting car showroom measuring 1,300 m2, aided by steel surfaces

with a high-gloss finish, combined with various grey tones, as well as a seamless, inviting glass facade on the building's lower floor,” concludes Jutta Missal.

If you are an Astron Builder, don't forget to submit your entries to Jutta Missal at Astron. Last year's winner not only took the honour and the attention – a week's holiday for two in the Caribbean was also part of the 'bonus'. Does that sound interesting?

WHAT The annual Astron competition to select the steel building of the year

CUSTOMER Astron Builders

Astron competition highlights the potential of steel

Building of the Year

Astron MSB Building of the Year 2006. Car showroom for Cars Benelux in Luxembourg constructed by the Astron Builder MBS S.A.


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Astron SSB Building of the Year 2006. Ice hall for the Polish municipality of Elblag constructed by the Astron Builder Asenhajmer.

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New manufacturing methods for gal-vanised steel sheeting and a little light turbulence on the retail market. Over the last few years, things have really heated up for Lindab on the Danish market when it comes to roof drainage. “Just standing still and watching is not the way we do things,” says Mette B. Andersen, Sales Manager for Lindab Rainline in Denmark. “It is about being proactive, putting your message out there and attracting the cus-tomers to Lindab with new methods.”

Over a long period of time, Lindab Denmark has sold the majority of its Rainline roof drain-age products via four main channels. “For dif-ferent reasons, two of them chose to terminate their contracts with us at quite short notice, putting us in an awkward position. That was one of the things that happened,” explains Mette B. Andersen. “In addition, the steelwork is undergo-ing conversion to so-called chromate-free pas-sivation, which leads to environmental improve-ments, but at the same time affects the appear-ance of the galvanised steel through the uncon-trolled occurrence of white rust. For a long time, we have chosen not to actively market galvanised roof drainage systems, but since it is a very popu-lar quality in Denmark, we have still sold a sub-stantial amount. Therefore, we quickly decided to take strong marketing measures.”

In both cases, Lindab Denmark chose to focus all its efforts on active campaigns that would partly increase knowledge and sales of Lindab Rainline, and partly redirect sales from galva-nised steel to Silver metallic or Aluzinc. “The Pocket Bike Campaign” was aimed at build-ers’ merchants and retailers, apart from the two that terminated their contracts, but also directly at almost 3,000 craftsmen and contractors in

Denmark. “A Pocket Bike is a mini motorcycle that can be ridden. When we offered all the build-ers’ merchants who spent at least DKR 50,000 on Rainline products a free Pocket Bike, they went mad,” continues Mette B. Andersen. We immedi-ately received 100 orders and they then used the Pocket Bikes in their exhibitions and raffled them off amongst employees and customers. We then introduced the DR campaign aimed at the con-tractors so we could clearly promote the build-ers merchants that have “Denmark’s best water drainage system in stock.”

Lindab achieved a response frequency of over 30 % and raffled off 10 Pocket Bikes to the contractors that replied. “The result of the cam-paign was very good,” says Mette B. Andersen. “Not only did we match last year’s result, we actually exceeded it.”

Galvanised guttering has always been popular in Denmark. “Now that there is the pressure to convert steelwork to trivalent chrome or totally chrome-free passivation for environmental rea-sons, we could not accept the increase in aesthetic defects,” says Mette B. Andersen. “It makes the white rust problem impossible to avoid. Since we knew that our metallic steel and aluzinc gut-tering was a superior alternative, we decided to make contact with 20 % of our customers that are responsible for 80 % of our sales and let them know about this.” At the same time, Lindab made the decision to stop sales of galvanised gut-tering from 1 January 2008. “So far the result has exceeded our expectations,” concludes Mette B. Andersen. “Not only did the customers appre-ciate the accurate information we gave them concerning the problems with galvanised steel, but most of all, we have increased the number of loyal customers, and significantly boosted sales of Lindab Rainline.”

Vi hjælper jer til øget salg af LindabRainline med direct mails og annoncering over for landets tømrermestre, halbyg-gere og entreprenører.

LindabRainline Konkurrence

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Bikes, vi sætter på højkant. Vinderne får direkte besked

og offentliggøres på www.lindab.dk/pocketbike.

Fire hurtigeSvar på spørgsmålene og gør os lidt klogere på din

virksomhed. Formålet er at indrette vores service og

produktprogram, så det opfylder dine behov.

1. Hvilken tømmerhandel handler du mest med?

2. Hvilken tømmerhandel er nr. to?

3. Bruger du LindabRainline ståltagrender?

Ja – jeg bruger mest Stålmetallic

Ja – jeg bruger mest galvaniseret

Nej – jeg bruger:

4. Hvilke opgaver arbejder din virksomhed med?

Landbrug

Industri

Bolig

Lokale opgaverFirma:Navn:Adresse:Postnr.:

By:

Tlf.:

Vind en fræk Pocket Bike

med LindabRainline


Tlf.: 73 99 73 73www.lindab.dk

Nu kan din forretning blive ekstra godt kørende med Lindab

Rainline. Hvis I fylder lageret op for mindst 50.000 kr.

netto senest den 24/10, får I en fræk Pocket Bike

– årets store hit og kilde til mange timers god underholdning.

Brug den som trækplaster i jeres forretning resten af året og

få ekstra opmærksomhed omkring LindabRainline. Derefter

kan I bruge den, som I har lyst til evt. som gevinst ved jeres

interne julefrokost.

Nye kunder på vej

Landets tømrermestre, halbyggere og entreprenører har mu

lighed for at vinde en Pocket Bike. Vi sender breve direkte ud

til alle og indrykker desuden en annonce i Mester Tidende.

Med denne kampagne hjælper vi LindabRainline kunderne til

jeres forretning.


Har du benzin i blodet?

Pocket Biken er årets store hit, og nu kan du vinde din egen lille racer med Lindab-Rainline.

Det er let at være med i konkurrencen. Du skal blot svare på nogle få spørgsmål på kuponen og sende den til os senest 31. oktober – vi har betalt portoen.

Vi sætter 10 Pocket Bikes på højkant, så du har en god chance for at vinde en af dem. Vinderne får direkte besked i starten af november og bliver offentliggjort på www.lindab.dk/pocketbike.

Danmarks stærkeste ståltagrende

LindabRainline er robust, fl ot og let at sætte op. Vores patenterede kliksystem gør lim og lodninger overfl ødige, og du kan levere en fl ot løsning, som din kunde kan glæde sig over i årevis.

På www.lindab.dk/pocketbike kan du læse mere om LindabRainline og fi nde den nærmeste lagerførende. Tlf. 73 99 73 73


LindabRainline konkurrence Vind en fræk Pocket BikeKonkurrencen

starter nu

Indsend kuponen og vær med


Vind en fræk

Pocket Bikemed LindabRainline

Pocket Biken er årets store hit, og nu

kan du vinde din egen lille racer med

LindabRainline.

Det er let at være med i konkurren-

cen. Gå ind på

www.lindab.dk/pocketbike, svar

på nogle få spørgsmål og send din

besvarelse. Så har du chancen for at

vinde en af de 10 Pocket Bikes,

vi sætter på højkant.

Danmarks stærkeste

ståltagrende

LindabRainline er robust, fl ot og let at

sætte op. Vores patenterede kliksy-

stem gør lim og lodninger overfl ødige,

og du kan levere en fl ot løsning, som

din kunde kan glæde sig over i årevis.

Når du deltager i konkurrencen på

www.lindab.dk/pocketbike, kan

du læse mere om LindabRainline og

fi nde den nærmeste lagerførende.

Har du benzin i blodet?

Tlf.: 73 99 73 73

Gi’ den gas med LindabRainline

Fyld lageret op og få en gratis Pocket Bike

Two campaigns – one aimed at Danish retailers and one aimed at building contractors – has stabilised and strengthened Lindab’s position on the Danish roof drainage market.

Vi har Danmarks stærkeste tagrende

på lagerLindabRainline er en stærk, smuk og håndterbar ståltagrende. Det patenterede kliksystem gør lim og lodninger overfl ødige, og resultatet bliver en fl ot tagrende, der holder i årevis.

Køb LindabRainline hos os. Vi lagerfører Danmarks stærkeste tagrende, så vi kan altid levere de mate-rialer, du har brug for.

LindabRainline Tagrendesystem

RainlineDenmark atfull throttleWHAT Rainline campaigns for increased sales and change from galvanised steel to metallic steel

CUSTOMER Denmark’s retailers of building materials and building contractors

WHO Lindab Denmark

��

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WHAT Installation of Lindab's new Safe Click duct system

CUSTOMER M+M Technik

WHO Lindab Switzerland

The Swiss company M+M Technik was not born yesterday when it comes to complete, proficient indoor climate solu-tions. With more than 25 years' expe-rience of ventilation installations and their assembly, from advanced clean-room solutions for the pharmaceuticals industry to complex commercial instal-lations, they have built up sound exper-tise in the field and created an excellent reputation for themselves. When M+M Technik was to implement its first instal-lation of Lindab Safe Click, there was consequently a great deal of curiosity regarding how it would be received.

“As soon as we visited Lindab's factory in Grevie and saw a presentation of the new sys-tem, we immediately realised its advantages,” says Patrick Müller, Managing Director of M+M Technik, which has its head office in the Swiss town of Rotkreuz. “These advantages included significantly shorter installation times through simplified assembly, and a duct that is completely clean and smooth on the inside, making cleaning and maintenance much easier.

Lindab has also gone one step further and, for the first time in our sector, developed a workbench, the SR-Cutter, which is specifically designed for the purpose. Using this tool, our installation engineers can now cut the ducts at perfect right angles, a feature that we consider necessary since we always want to produce pro-fessional installations.”

“Now that we have tested the Safe Click system for ourselves, all the benefits we antici-pated have been confirmed,” continues Patrick Müller. “If you look at the overall picture, the system's main advantage is without doubt its simplicity. Particularly in small, confined spaces, the Safe Click system demonstrates an incred-ible strength in that the difficult riveting of the ducts is entirely eliminated, while the actual installation is just as secure as previously. It is just so much easier. We are utterly convinced that Lindab, with Safe Click and the SR-Cutter, has succeeded in developing a product which satisfies the very stringent demands that the market is entitled to expect when it comes to product launches from Lindab.”

M+M Technik has been a customer of

Lindab for more than 10 years. “This collabora-tion has been very fruitful, and we view Lindab as an extremely reliable and skilled partner,” continues Patrick Müller. “We can continue to guarantee our customers sealed systems that satisfy very high quality requirements. But in a simpler way.”

“This makes assembly so quick and simple that you could almost do it in your sleep,” says Fredy Petermanna, installation engineer at M+M Technik. “We installation engineers con-sider the rapid installation and the simplified assembly in confined spaces to be the major benefit. If I'm honest, I had some doubts as to how well the joints would hold, but now that we have installed around 1,500 metres of duct systems here, I have to admit I was wrong. All the joints are very stable and completely sealed. It's difficult to say how much time we will save, as no two installations are the same, but in many cases we will be able to cut the installation time by more than 50 %. Quite simply, we are convinced.”

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M+M Technik convinced by the benefits of Safe Click


From left Patrick Müller, owner of M+M Technik, Markus Hurschler, Sales manager Lindab Switzerland, Fredy Petermann, installation engineer, M+M at the installa-tion at the Eichhof brewery.

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Cooperation with Autodesk, the owner and developer of AutoCAD, the world-leading technical CAD platform for construction, intensifies. From its introductory position in Autodesk’s Developer Net-work, Lindab has now been given the status of full Alliance Partner. “Our CADvent program was devel-oped at Autodesk, and through the program mod-ule that we have been given access to, we have been able to create an application that works in the extremely diverse AutoCAD environment,” says Björn Broberg, IT solutions Product Manager. “Now that we are an Alliance Partner we will be able to participate in and contribute to the AutoCAD de-velopment process itself. This will provide us with completely new opportunities to influence the de-velopment of their basic application as well as, for example, the ventilation aspects of their MEP (Me-chanical Electrical Plumbing) application.

CADvent was previously a freestanding, add-in application for AutoCAD, just like other compet-ing programs such as the Finnish Magicad. When in 2006, Autodesk developed the first generation of MEP, its own basic application for ventilation, electricity and plumbing, specific ventilation func-tions were added to CADvent. This benefitted designers and installation technicians by providing product databases, product choice guides, calcu-lations, connections to business systems etc. In other words everything a designer and installation

technician needs to make ventilation work easier and more effective. “Now that we are an Alliance Partner, we can further improve integration with MEP and develop the AutoCAD/MEP/CADvent combination into an extremely beneficial aid,” adds Björn Broberg. “Since Autodesk’s application for construction drawing, Architectural, is also included in Autodesk, benefits are created for a new user group, namely property managers. This inclusion means that they can obtain all the information they need on their properties – building specifications, ventilation, electricity and plumbing – via a single application, MEP.”

This integration via MEP provides other op-portunities too. For example, while in a construction meeting, it is now possible to make on the spot revisions in MEP, as well as synchronise and co-ordinate these in the other applications. When the installation technician next opens the updated MEP file in his or her system, all the relevant CADvent drawings will be automatically updated. “Most im-portant of all, however, is the fact that we can now ensure a future with CADvent and that we have es-tablished favourable conditions for influencing the development work within AutoCAD, allowing our central construction, price setting and project tool to be further improved and still better suited to the user,” concludes Björn Broberg.

Increased IT integration

Lindab Partnership is a form of cooperation that allows Lindab’s ventilation customers access to a string of benefits, which result in better business for both parties. “We improve the customer’s conditions for placing safer and more complete offers with maxi-mum cost control,” says Björn Broberg, Lindab. “Re-alising later that you have calculated wrongly is not good enough. The Lindab Partnership agreement eliminates this problem.”

Lindab Partnership is based upon an increased cooperation between Lindab and the customer, which is in turn based upon the benefits provided

by CADvent. “In purely practical terms, this entails the customer sending normal 2D or 3D plan-draw-ings to its Partnership contact at Lindab. We then

convert these to CADvent drawings in 3D, and in doing so, the customer gains ac-cess to all the benefits CAD-vent offers,” continues Björn Broberg. “Exact material lists with prices, installation draw-ings in both 2D and 3D with the collision processing and all the calculation functions that are included in CADvent. This

provides both safer offers and a project that runs more smoothly with respect to both planning and installation.”

Plus points for Partnership

A new European standard for ventilation ducts, EN 12097, has been recently introduced, which is aimed specifically at facilitating the cleaning and maintenance of duct components. “Primarily, this standard contains norms for the sizes and posi-tioning of access hatches in duct systems,” ex-plains Lars-Åke Mattsson, R&D Manager for ADS. “The purpose is to make internal cleaning and maintenance easier, as well as to simplify inspec-tion of the insides of duct systems.”

Cleaning hatches have been included in Lind-ab’s Scandinavian program for many years, based on local regulations. Other markets have also had their preferences for cleaning hatches. “Now that a common European standard has been estab-lished, we have decided to combine our various programs to form a uniform European Lindab program,” adds Lars-Åke Mattsson. “This means that we will now be able to offer our customers an expanded range of easily cleanable components. The program includes parts through which the sys-tem can be easily entered, but also products such as fully openable shutters, resulting in obstruction-free ducts.”

Lindab’s new program for cleaning hatches and cleanable components will be available from the beginning of 2008 throughout all markets. “We hope that this will be well received by our custom-ers and together with our new Lindab Safe Click system, which is completely smooth on the inside, be seen as a new approach to providing simple and effective duct maintenance,” concludes Lars-Åke Mattsson.

New program of cleanable products

air duct systems | access doors

Ductwork components to facilicate maintenance

Unique cooperation between Autodesk and Lindab

Lindab is about to introduce a new combined European program of duct components that facilitates internal clean-ing and maintenance of the duct system. The products included in this program meet the new European standard EN12097 for duct components, to simplify maintenance.

EN 12097 – new European standard

AutoCAD

2006

CADventMagicad MEP v1

AutoCAD

2007

CADventMagicad MEP

CADvent

Architectural

On establishing closer relations with Autodesk, all CADvent users may proceed as usual, but if access to increased integration and coordination is called for within electricity, plumbing and construction, it is possible to access CADvent and Autodesk Architectural via their MEP application.

News from Ventilation business area

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“Finally something is happening within ven-tilation technology”, “the SR Cutter makes cutting much easier” and “Lindab Safe Click will speed up installation significantly” are just a few examples of comments made recently in Finland as a result of the Lindab Safe Click Roadshow that recently took place there. “Back before the summer we were already considering how best to spread informa-tion about our new products, Lindab Safe Click and SR Cutter,” explains Markku Mattila, manager at Lindab Finland. “We immediately felt that a really great Roadshow lorry would be the right way. This proved to be a good decision; after four weeks on the roads of Finland we had managed no fewer than 22 stops and presented our new systems to between 40 and 150 people a day. We are very satisfied with the result.”

Comprehensive preparatory work com-menced long before the 15-metre Roadshow lorry began displaying its enormous Lindab Safe Click picture and its exciting contents around Finland. “In June we sent out a direct advertising kit about Lindab Safe Click/SR Cutter and the full Road-show timetable to all our customers,” explains Jari Lehtonen, sales manager for ADS in Finland. “We followed this up with information on our website, additional reminders and finally a personal invita-tion addressed to our customers. The Lindab Safe Click Roadshow rolled out through the gates of our head office in Espoo on 18 September, and we felt we had done everything we could to attract visitors along the way.”

The route for the Lindab Safe Click Road-show covered the whole of Finland, following a

large circle up through the east of the country and down through the west. “Of course, we included stops directly on the premises of our major dealers, which allowed us to provide them with very con-crete information about the benefits of the two sys-tems,” continues Jari Lehtonen. “After all, they are the ones who will be doing most of the sales work. In each town we visited, there were representatives from all of our major customers, such as Tekmanni, YIT, Are, Kitek, etc., as well as a large number of small and medium-sized ventilation installers.”

“We sold a large number of SR Cutters during the Roadshow, and most of the people who saw and tested it were very positive. We are now wait-ing for reactions regarding Lindab Safe Click from our major dealers, and we believe we are justified in being genuinely optimistic about the future!”

Lindab Romania has opened no less than two Ventilation Centers in the country during the year. The first was inaugurated on 6 June in Foresti, close to Cluj in north-western Romania. The sec-ond Center is situated in Constanta, in the south-east of the country. Both ventures are aimed at increasing local sales and consolidating Lindab's position on the market. “The area around Cluj, i.e. Transylvania, used to be a great sales success for us, but has gradually lost ground,” explains Ovidiu Margan, Business Unit Manager at BAV, Lindab Romania. “It is also situated in the part of the country, close to western Europe, in which major investments are now being made in industry and manufacture. Increasingly important divisions of major dealers and distributors are also gathering here. The decision to win back our position in the area, and to further strengthen it, was therefore not a difficult one. Proximity to our customers is always central to us.”

“The positive sales trend is already very clear,” continues Ovidiu Margan. “If the trend continues, we expect to break even on these investments

during this year, which is very pleasing. Since the inauguration, we have succeeded in becoming the supplier to a number of important projects, and the quantity of installation customers is now increasing rapidly,” adds Adrian Oprescu, sales manager for Transylvania area.

Ovidiu Margan can see major advantages from having a presence in two well developed and 'hot' parts of Romania. “This provides us with plenty of potential to increase our market shares, as we can offer Lindab's broad product range, high quality and rapid deliveries to more and more customers.”

Demands from the Romanian market as re-gards indoor climate and ventilation systems are becoming increasingly high, both from installers and from designers and architects. “Our investment in high-tech expertise and advanced IT tools will be particularly handy in this respect,” concludes Ovidiu Margan. “It is our belief that this will represent a decisive advantage for Lindab on the Romanian market and will undoubtedly strengthen our posi-tions there.”

Lindab Safe Click Roadshow

Between 40 and 150 visitors every day was the final result of the Lindab Safe Click Roadshow in Finland. The Finnish ventilation sector is now much better informed about the future and potential of ventilation technology! The Roadshow's reception has been viewed as very positive.

Now in Finland, the launch of the new Lindab Safe Click rolls on

The inauguration of Lindab's Ventilation Center near Cluj attracted a large number of customers, including Pro Lights, LM Cliveentis, Grup Energoinstal and Eurobil Impex, to name but a few. The 1,000 m2 centre stocks a large proportion of Lindab's ADS and Comfort ranges, and was opened amidst great ceremony by the Lindab Romania' Business Unit Manager, Andrei Sulyok, and by Ovidiu Margan, Business Unit Manager at BAV.

Ventilation Centers generating businessLindab Romania investing heavily in new regions

News from Ventilation business area Lindab Direct December 2007

News from Profile business areaLindab Direct December 2007

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Successful international expert group meeting at Lindab RomaniaLindab Romania hosted the annual meeting of the ECCS (European Convention for Construction-al Steelworks) working group TC7. ECCS is a trade organisation that is made up of representatives from the steel industry as well as educational insti-tutions such as universities, colleges and research institutes. “This year's meeting focused on techni-cal issues regarding thin metal sheet constructions in buildings and their application based on the Eu-rocode 3 standard,” explains Andrei Sulyok, Man-aging Director of Lindab Romania. “Naturally tt is an honour to receive professors from more than 20 universities and institutes representing both Europe and the USA. It also provided us with the oppor-tunity to show-off Lindab's system solutions in the area, thereby spreading further knowledge about practical steel constructions.”

“We received a very warm and pleasant recep-tion from Lindab,” explains Veronique Baes-De-han, General Secretary of ECCS in Brussels. “An interesting factory tour and a detailed presentation of Lindab left a clear picture of a very professional company producing system solutions, which im-pressed us all. I am hoping for an explosion of steel construction throughout Europe, and can see excellent opportunities for ECCS to support this work. On behalf of all the delegates, I would like to thank Lindab's staff for the excellent organisation and the perfect reception!”

The ECCS meeting in Bucharest resulted in two reports – “Worked examples to EN 1993-1-3” and “The testing of connections with mechanical fasteners in steel sheeting and sections”. Anyone who is interested can find more information about this at www.steelconstruct.com.

Print One in Halmstad not only does the so-called prepress and prints the paper you are holding right now, it also prints a number of other items for Lindab, including the Group’s annual report. “We are cur-rently in the middle of an intensive expansion phase,” explains Mats Johansson, CEO, Print One, “and since we needed premises that are customised for our business, new construction work was the only alternative. Since Lindab is a large supplier of steel constructions and halls, it felt natural to accept offers and suggestions from them too.”

“The construction of Print One’s new hall started as recently as May, but was completed so quickly that this issue of Lindab Direct could be printed in the middle of December,” explains Tomas Ledel at Lindab’s Hallcenter in Slöinge. The hall measures 30 x 72 m, has an LTP 115-ceiling and sandwich ele-ment walls. The assembly was carried out by Bygg-Andersson.

“Until now, we have known Lindab as a professional customer,” continues Mats Johansson. “Now we know that the same applies to Lindab as a supplier. Tomas Ledel and Lindab have provided us with excel-lent service and guided us in choosing facade colours and other solutions. Now, we have a completely open, cantilever hall that fully meets our strict requirements on logistics and on being able to bring in mate-rial in a logical way. With our new Heidelberg 8 colour printing press and a 125 m long production line, we can shorten our lead times and hope to be able to give our customers even better service than before.”

Lindab printing house chooses Lindab hall

The new 2,100 m2 Lindab hall at Print One provides us with new opportunities for ensuring a flexible workflow from the delivery of material to the printed, bound and ready-to-deliver product. The paper you have in your hand has gone through the 125 m long production line faster than ever before.

Structural cassettes simplify the construction processStructural cassettes are used in most com-mercial building projects in Romania. “This is why we began to manufacture these products here ourselves,” says Ioan Farcas at Lindab Romania. “We'd previously had this product in the form of traded goods, but when we saw how demand was increasing and that local production would also bring about reduced costs, we took the deci-sion to commence our own manufacture.”

Structural cassettes are used for the construc-tion of double, insulated sheet profile walls. The box-like form of the structural cassette allows the cassettes to be hooked onto each other to form a completely smooth inner wall. Installation is made much easier by the fact that both the outer facade sheet and the structural cassettes are installed from the outside in a single manoeuvre.

“This results in a shorter installation time as well as a very stable internal wall, with no projecting mounting components and very good protection against the weather,” continues Ioan Farcas. “It also

provides the opportunity to create variation in the appearance of the wall through the choice of profiles and colours. We can see plenty of potential for this product in the future,

and even though the competition is very intense, we currently have the advantage of being just about the only local producer.”

In addition to Romania, the product is also sold in neighbouring CEE countries.

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Purlins are all the rage in Romania. According to independent analysts, the market prospects are thought to be ex-cellent, with an annual growth of around 30 %.

“In order properly to satisfy the growing de-mand for purlins that we are clearly witnessing, we decided to commence production locally here in Romania,” explains Andrei Sulyok, Managing Di-rector of Lindab Romania. “The purlins were previ-ously delivered here from Lindab Hungary, but now that we are producing locally, we can offer both rapid delivery times and more competitive prices, as our transport costs have been reduced. The entire Romanian market is crying out for fast, flex-ible and complete solutions for simplified construc-tion, and there is no doubt that we are holding the trump card. This is particularly the case now that the production line for purlins is operating at full speed.” This line has a capacity of 15,000 metres

Lindab Direct December 2007News from Profile business area

Lindab Denmark has recently made two spe-cial deliveries of over 50 Doorline Industrial Doors in total. “What both deliveries had in common was that they had to solve and fulfil fairly special cus-tomer requirements,” explains Jørgen Luff, Sales Manager for Lindab’s facility in Jels, Denmark, where Lindab’s industrial and garage doors are manufactured. “One of the cases involved having to deliver 22 industrial doors at very short notice to one of Denmark’s largest manufacturers of wind power stations, Hendricks Industries. The other case involved delivering 34 blue industrial doors to the new facility of the Cevital foodstuffs group in eastern Algeria.

The wind power industry has without a doubt wind in its sails. So, when Hendricks Industries

decided to seek help from the building contractor Jørgen Friis Poulsen in Herning, things would really pick up speed. The requirement was for Lindab to deliver and assemble 22.6 x 7.2 m sized indus-trial doors within 15 working days. “It was quite a challenge, but naturally we accepted it,” continues Jørgen Luff. “The delivery went impeccably and we were able to give good support regarding the solu-tion itself and make sure that the cooperation with the other suppliers on the building site worked well.” The second special order came via Lindab Astron in Luxemburg. “This time, it was not a mat-ter of delivering extremely quickly,” says Jørgen Luff. “Instead, it was about adapting the material to the unusually warm climate by Lindab’s stan-dards. 34 industrial doors were needed for the ap-

prox. 2,300 m2 large building, but as our standard sandwich doors are made from aluminium, which is not suitable for temperatures above 45 degrees Celsius, a new solution had to be found. The an-swer was that Lindab Profil in Denmark, via a sub-contractor, rapidly developed a blue steel coil that we could cover the surface of the doors with.” One of Lindab’s subsidiaries, Holland Door Service, sent a technician down to Algeria and managed to educate the local craftsmen on how to assemble, maintain and operate the doors in a short space of time. “Our slogan is ‘simplified construction’, there-fore we must apply it,” concludes Jørgen Luff.

Quick and flexible with Doorline

34 unique Doorline doors are in use at Cevital’s foodstuffs industry in Algeria, all with steel sheeting coated surfaces instead of aluminium.

The tall wind turbines enter Hendricks new wind power production plant through Doorline doors on one side and, after completion, exit through Doorline doors on the other.

Well-timed inauguration of new Romanian production line for purlins

per day, which corresponds to 3.6 million metres annually.

“We can now offer our customers the very best products in a completely different way, with shorter delivery times and at a better price,” says Romica Stan, Managing Director of Robirom Zalu, one of Romania's leading distributors and one of Lindab's most important Romanian customers. “We have had a similar response from most of our customers,” continues Andrei Sulyok. “When we

inaugurated the new production line, there were no fewer than 44 inquisitive journalists present, watch-ing practical assembly exercises involving Lind-ab's light construction technology. This resulted in phenomenal media exposure, which has meant that just about the entire sector, from architects to design engineers and contractors, is now very aware of Lindab's potential with regards to simpli-fied construction.”

l indab | vent i lat ion

New!

fully

Portableeasy

to useGet a fast and safe cut with the new SR CutterWith the new SR Cutter from Lindab you get a precise

and clean cut of ducts every time. Fast, simple and safe

to use, the SR Cutter also means ergonomically correct

cutting – with lesser noise and without sparks.

The SR Cutter is fully portable and easy to get on and

off site. It cuts ducts up to 0,9 mm thickness and up to

3 metres in length to within Ø80-Ø315 mm. Learn more

about the SR Cutter’s many advantages and watch the

new movie on: www.lindab.com/click

the magazine from lindab that focuses on simpler building

Documents