13 mars 2004

From a garage to 2000 square meters

Back in 1967 Leif Andersson started the company in a garage. A wide range of products for many different purposes were manufactured. In the middle of the seventies Anderssons Mekaniska started to specialise the main part of the production for the furniture industry.


This is what the new infinitely adjustable locking device looks like. The spring is being contracted by wires fitted to the chair. After the spring has been contracted, the piston can move freely inside the pipe.

Only ten years later the patent of the unique infinitely adjustable locking device for furniture was granted. Since then this fitting has been further developed and there is a new patent granted. The patented fitting consists of a piston sliding in a pipe and a braking spring.

The solution provides an infinitely locking device for adjustable armchairs. It is simply adapted to any model. It only requires a modification of the design and shape of the fittings that are holding the back- and the seat rests. This does not only make the complete locking device unique, but also provides a solution that can be build in to any armchair, no matter if it is made of wood, plastics or steel.

A successful company
Nowadays the company is managed by the two sons Göran Kronholm and Thomas Andersson.
With a constant increase in sales since 1977 Anderssons Mekaniska AB no doubt is a successful company. The annual turnover is in excess of 19 million Swedish Crowns, a fact that has been made possible only by the commitment of the owners and by the 23 person strong staff.

The premises were increased by 100% at the turn of the millennium and are for more than 2000 square metres. Anderssons are continuously expanding; a new office building was made and other premises were renovated. High quality machinery with matching equipment has been moved into these premises. It is an important thing to have high quality machinery, but it is even more important to have high class operators. The Andersson staff recognises a quality work and immediately tell the difference, should there be any deviation.

Large Export share
Anderssons has long experience from its line of business gained throughout the decades. This combined with the wish to look for new stimulating situations, attract customers from all Europe. The largest part of the manufacture is being exported outside the Swedish border. Almost 60 % of the orders come from customers in Denmark. Anderssons Mekaniska has many customers who are suppliers of well-known brands within the furniture industry. To be able to comply with these demands really verifies a qualified work. But Anderssons Mekaniska always is on search for new customers to guarantee a continuously good development.

- Our name is well-known on the continent and our customers get in touch with us over customer relations and over dealers, who warmly recommend us. In this way we can concentrate on making world-beating products. To be competitive on the European market you must stand up for reliable delivery times and high quality products. Developing new solutions is part of many new products, and therefore flexibility is another decisive issue.
 
At this point we are enormously strong. It's really working, and we have a close cooperation not only with our customers but also with local companies. We make pipes and fittings requiring great precision and we can leave them to be powder coated at our neighbourhood company Assas Pulverlackering in Hillerstorp. To mention some further cooperation partners in the neighbourhood; Kromtjänst in Vaggeryd, chrome- and nickel-plating, and Proton in Hillerstorp nickel- and zinc-plating.

A set of furniture where the stand is made by Anderssons Mekaniska.		Anderssons Mekaniska AB - the premises.

Local subcontractors
Anderssons Mekaniska manufactures the specific fitting but also complete products, where only the sitting couch is being assembled by another supplier. Anderssons Mekaniska also makes fittings for tubing systems supporting tables and chairs. The cooperation with other companies in the region, specialised in for instance surface treatment, makes it easier to comply with any total solution requested by the customer. This helps you finding the total solution and to deliver a complete product.

- We also call in competing companies, to some extent, and we believe that this proves that we promote cross-border actions.

Materials like sheet-metal, wire and pipes are supplied to Anderstorps Mekaniska by local subcontractors. This also strengthen the cooperation in the region. These materials are then being worked up by the staff into various furniture products, always considering the customers' special wishes.

New sophisticated CNC-controled machines, such as pipe bending machines, and welding robots have been installed in order to meet today's and future product requirements.


The newest pipe bending machine for multipurpose, sophisticated pipe bending.

Skilled staff
Göran Kronholm emphasises the skill of the operators. Specialised, customised solutions and development lead to customer satisfaction.

- We like to be involved on the stage of development, as this makes the whole thing more interesting and most of the times yields better results if we can offer our skills at an early stage. Our high abilities and skills and the efficiently teamwork within the company enable us to keep such a high quality of the goods we produce. The staff is trained not only to manage new situations and machines, but also to develop their individual personalities. Being a united group in development issues and in production we can all contribute ideas that will bring us forward.

Gateway to the European market
So what can GnosjoRegion.com do for a company that has already strong, regular customers?

- We believe this portal to be the very meeting-point for which the customer is looking! The marketing by GnosjoRegion.com of this portal all over Europe is an important step, helping our future customers to find us. The portal offers the whole European market the gateway to all our companies in the region. Before this portal penetrates the European market and offers their companies access to our companies, we will, over the portal, establish some new relations with other Swedish companies.

/Håkan Andersson