glaston´s glass processing group to be consolidated into one company

The Glass Processing Group, which belongs to Kyro´s main business area, Glaston Technologies, will be consolidated into one company. The group´s three companies Tamglass Safety Glass Ltd, Tamglass Insulating Glass Ltd and Tamglass Finton Oy will merge into a single legal entity in the turn of the year 2006-2007. The name of this comprehensive supplier of glass products will be Tamglass Glass Processing Ltd, already used as a unit name.

The consolidation has been preceded during 2006 by the merger of Insulating Glass and Safety Glass operations, complete with personnel reductions, and a change in Finton´s operating model. The group´s production efficiency has been enhanced by reducing fixed costs and improving the productivity of personnel, factories and machinery. The Tamglass Glass Processing companies have synergies that will be exploited through the merger.

A restructuring to be completed before the end of the current year will have a positive impact on financial performance as of 2007.

In connection with the merger, Tamglass Glass Processing has divided its business areas in a new way. A production and sales organisation has been built to give improved support to different customer groups and their needs. The new business areas are architectural glass, window and furniture glass, and special automotive glass. Around 75% of the company´s customers are various Finnish-based users of architectural as well as window and furniture glass products and around 25% are Finnish and other European users of special automotive glass.

Tamglass Glass Processing is also developing its production with new and replacement investments. The company will utilise the Glaston Glass Machinery Group´s leading technology to achieve and maintain market leadership in Finland´s
glass processing sector.