The brainchild of a group of Finnish master builders in Helsinki, Lemminkäinen got off to a brisk start.
The brainchild of a group of Finnish master builders in Helsinki, Lemminkäinen got off to a brisk start.
Asfaltti Oy Lemminkäinen was founded in 1910. Lemminkäinen was the name of a God-like hero in the Kalevala – Finland’s National Epic. The name was purposefully chosen to emphasise the Finnishness of the company.
”A number of individuals working in the construction industry had the idea of establishing their own asphalt and cement business in Helsinki in the form of a joint-stock company”. Those words opened the first annual report of Asfallti Oy Lemminkäinen for the year 1910.
Finland was in its final years as an Autonomous Grand Duchy of the Russian Empire, and aspirations of nationhood were much in evidence. Patriotic fervour also infused the business world. Master builders had been trained in Helsinki since 1883, and now they were enthusiastically building the capital city at the beginning of the 20th century.
The driving force behind the new company was master builder Kaarlo Oila, who at the inaugural meeting on July 7 was elected general manager and chairman of Lemminkäinen’s board of management.
Off to a brisk start
The timing of Lemminkäinen’s establishment was auspicious in the sense that a depression that had lasted for a few years came to an end in 1910 and was followed by a period of strong growth.
Kaarlo Oila rented a plot of land from the City of Helsinki in the Merisatama district of the city. A timber-built workshop, store and office were built on the site and in the following year a clerk was hired to work in the office.
Little more than asphalt works were carried out in the first year of operations, but in the spring of 1911 it was decided that the company would branch out into ”stairway steps, landings and ordinary concrete arches, but not reinforced concrete works”. At that time asphalt works mainly involved the waterproofing of building foundations and basement walls.
Lemminkäinen’s business went well in the early years. Work came mainly from the company’s own shareholders, who were builders in Helsinki. New builders joined the ranks of Lemminkäinen, including master builders Oskari Vilamo and Vilho Ääri, who had their own contracting businesses.
In 1912 the company was already generating sales of 250,000 Finnish marks, the equivalent of about EUR 800,000 in today’s money. The company was then employing about 75 people on average, and 100 or more in busy periods.
First World War puts growth on hold
The year 1914 was a very difficult one for the young company. The outbreak of the First World War halted construction completely for some time, and the prices of building materials went through the roof. But the war did bring some benefits too: in 1916 ”We were able to carry out some war works for the Russian State.” Helsinki was hastily fortified amidst fears of a German attack.
In 1918, with the conflict over and the raw materials situation easing, there was talk once again of expanding the business. New tasks awaited Lemminkäinen as independent Finland started to build for its future.