Business operations quite literally mean business and operations. There is also a time to stop – to consider a new direction in a new environment – but, when it comes to business,  parking is strictly prohibited. What was the new black yesterday is bland and grey today. Former bright ideas are not bottomless pits, and the success stories of tomorrow are built with action, right here and now.

Partners need to have intelligence and emotion

Digitisation has added not only intelligence, but also emotion to partnerships. The current trend in industrial partnerships is the will to grow and develop together, by supplementing and supporting one another through expertise. The digital exercise means that ideas are built and changes are made together. When moving forward, there must be courage to ask for help and to try something new.

As existing partners are being audited ever more closely, the expectations set for partnerships have increased. A dying flame offers no heat – similarly, partnerships must be taken care of. To us, this means shared information, customised solutions and working together. An attitude and atmosphere that enable growth turn a partnership into genuine cooperation where partners are not divided into givers and takers. Cooperation produces success for both parties.

New opportunities in interaction

Digitisation is also changing our ways of working together. To us, a true interaction between people is still irreplaceable but, using different applications, it is easier and more effective.

A smooth flow of information and exchange of ideas have added a deeper dimension to Kiilto’s partnerships and international cooperation by allowing us to maintain continuous contact between the customer, R&D, sales and customer service. Having different experts engaged in interaction is particularly important when creating something new together. The geographic distance is no longer an obstacle, or a disadvantage to varied interaction.

True benefits from intelligence

The world cannot be built ready through digitisation. However, leaps big and small are being made every day. Through data and automation, processes become more effective, quality management improves, predictions become easier and decisions can be made based on up-to-date information. For example, KiiltoClean’s cooperation with the Fredman Group and Nokeval brings about the benefits of the Industrial Internet to the metal industry in the form of the OVA self-monitoring system. It provides customers with measurement data, data management, reporting and various automatic functions based on data.

One of the most important evaluation criteria for the adoption of different applications and new operating methods is how they improve the customer experience and what value they produce for our partnerships. For example, Kiilto’s online training for the safe use of our products and different applications for quality control in the logistics chain of our products can be seen and felt as improved safety and quality in the everyday operations of our customers – as concrete values that are also particularly important to us.

In perpetual motion

As the world is changing, also the needs of customers are changing. By keeping our eyes in the future, we are able to predict these changes and respond to them in good time.  What is needed in partnerships is a mutual understanding of their goals and genuine and continuous interaction.

Let us boldly challenge one another and build something new, together! In order to extensively utilise digitisation in industrial partnerships, we need mutual trust and will. To have these, we need to talk about objectives, wishes, shared sets of rules, practices and information security. What we already have is a direction: forwards.

Timo Esko
product manager
KiiltoClean Oy

Tero Mäkinen
customer service manager
Kiilto Oy

 

Authors:

Timo Esko works as product manager in the industrial department of KiiltoClean Oy, being responsible for product management for metal and paper industry customers.

Tero Mäkinen works as customer service manager in the industrial department of Kiilto Oy, being responsible for product management and service range for wood processing, prefabricated building element, transportation and ship-building industry customers.

Being part of the Kiilto Family Group, KiiltoClean Oy is the leading Finnish supplier of hygiene and cleaning solutions, which develops and manufactures safe and easy-to-use Finnish products. Our product range includes washing, cleaning and care agents, hygiene products, industrial chemicals, as well as cleaning equipment and machinery. Founded in 1919, Kiilto Oy is a Finnish family-owned company manufacturing chemical products. It is also part of the Kiilto Family Group. Kiilto Oy develops and manufactures adhesives, plasters, levelling compounds, waterproofing membranes, compounds, oils and lacquers for the building industry and home renovation, as wells as adhesives for different industrial fields. In addition to Finland, Kiilto Oy operates in nine countries.

Further information: www.kiiltoclean.fi