Born to make a difference
Since Finnglass was founded in 1973 in Alavus, Finland, the company has gone through mergers, acquisitions and lastly, a management buy-out before becoming what we are today. Throughout these times of change, one thing remains the same – Finnglass’s ability to meet and exceed customer expectations with unparalleled innovation and quality.
Our values
Innovation
Long-history of trailblazing products and being first mover in market
High-quality
All operations from designing to manufacturing under one roof
Customer support
We support our customers in their project from start to finish.
The path forward
Current owners, Timo Saukko and Markku Manninen, took over Finnglass in a management buy-out from the French glass-giant Saint-Gobain in 2016. For the coowners, this meant going back to the roots. It meant preserving and reinforcing the values of innovation and high-quality that have enabled Finnglass to be the forerunner in glazing solutions for decades already. Today, innovation is blooming with new products and features, such as curved Laminate (shown in picture) and Signal Glass for boosting phone signals indoors.
Finnglass curved laminate 
We work with our customers to redefine quality
Our customers define the desired level of quality, not quality standards. They leave too much room for optical imperfections and thermal inefficiencies. Right from the start, we work with architects and engineers to define the specifications and technical properties, such as tolerances and mechanical strength, taking into account the customer’s wishes and local building codes. Units are always individually designed and tested. CAD drawings and reports can be shared upon request.
All operations under one roof
We do specifications, designs, glass processing and assembling, all under the same roof. Having control over all phases of production means that we hold the reins on quality. Our machinery consists of equipment from market-leading suppliers in the industry. In addition, because of our focus on outstanding quality, several key machines and glass processing phases have been further developed and tweaked to meet the higher levels of quality that we want to offer our customers. The only operations performed in part with external partners is R&D, where Finnglass works with several leading universities around Europe to innovate new disruptive technologies.
Finnglass factory 
Innovation in its DNA
Finnglass was founded in 1973, originally under the name of Tähti-lasi, to manufacture insulated glass in the time of the energy crisis. Glass companies seemed to appear out of thin air to compete for market share in the exploding insulated glass business. By the end of the decade, Tähti-lasi was the biggest insulated glass producer in the Finnish market. They differentiated themselves with long-term quality warranties and were among the first in the world to offer double, triple and even quadruple-glazed glass. Employees were working in three shifts to meet demand both locally and internationally, with as much as 70 % of outputs exported to other Nordic countries and Europe. Tähti means star in Finnish, and so the original Tähti-lasi factory featured a big star on its roof, looking like the new sheriff in town. This building served as the manufacturing plant in the 1970's, until Tähti-lasi moved to much bigger premises in 1980.
From an innovation prize to the President's visit
Innovation continued in the 1980’s, as the company was the first in the world to offer commercialized low-E glass in 1981. A year later, Finnglass's low-E glass won the best profitable-idea award in a competition with more than 200 contestants, organised by the Finnish Junior Chamber International. Low-E has since become an industry standard for insulated glass all across the globe. During the more competitive era in the 1990's, caused by glass processing overcapacity, Finnglass proved once again that its innovative, high-quality products were held in high regard by the market. In 1993, Finnglass introduced Electrically Heated Glass – an innovation that still today, continues to be an extraordinary product for eliminating condensation and melting snow and ice. The picture shows the 10th President of Finland and later Nobel peace prize winner, Martti Ahtisaari (3rd from left), visiting the Finnglass factory in 1998.
President Martti Ahtisaari visits Finnglass Timeline
