Smooth cooperation promotes future growth. In the photo from the left: Fatma Evrin-Görlich, Sales Coordinator at Metsä Fibre; Bernhard Cordes, Founder at Cordes; Andreas Cordes, Managing Director at Cordes and Alexander Köberl, Sales Director at Metsä Fibre.
vide us with raw material for our glulam and matchboard production,” says Cordes.
Quality is everything
Customers expect products to be of the highest quality. According to the Cordes brothers, Nordic and Finnish wood meets this requirement. Herzel says that customers expect the raw material to come from sustainably managed forests. “When we make products from Nordic wood, our customers know that companies in these countries follow sensible forestry legislation. They also expect us as the importer and planing mill to use certified goods that have been produced sustainably.” The products made by Cordes are both FSC®- and PEFC- certified. Certification of sustainable forestry management has been important when expanding into new markets.
Most of the raw material comes from Finland
Other companies in the Cordes Group also rely on Metsä Fibre’s sawn timber. Osmo Holz und Color, a Warendorf- based producer of for example external cladding, obtains nearly 70 per cent of its softwood from Finland, explains Managing Director Christian Cordes , brother of Andreas Cordes. “We use almost exclusively Finnish products. Their quality is particularly well suited for surface treatment with our paints. The combination of high-quality Finnish sawn timber and our Premium Osmo paint results in unique external cladding products.” In recent years, Osmo Holz und Color has invested in upgrading its products and modernising its paint shops. “We believe we can continue to grow and succeed by using premium Finnish wood.” Holz Henkel, based in Göttingen in Central Germany, also uses Metsä Fibre’s sawn timber. Planing accounts for 60 per cent of its business while wood importing and foreign trade generate the other 40 per cent. Most of the products are sold through a retail network to the DIY market and the process industry. “We are one of the leading planing mills in Germany. We have an excellent reputation for product quality, which is why we belong to VEH, the Association of the European Planing Industries. We have followed its grading specifications for a decade in our planing products,” says Torsten Herzel , Managing Director of Henkel.
Partnership supports growth
A good relationship with the raw material supplier is required for growth. When dealing with large volumes, reliable transport schedules and product quality are essential. “Metsä Fibre provides us with the right volume of premium sawn timber at the right time, which is very important to us,” says Andreas Cordes. All Cordes Group companies use Metsä Fibre’s Metsä Timber Online portal, which lets them easily check the status of orders. The portal also provides information about product improvements, new investments and changes in the market. Partnership also means growing and developing together, he says. “We enjoy a good partnership with Metsä Fibre, and it offers us enormous potential for growth in the years ahead.” •
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