Family members in a family business
Text: Pia Husu-Vierimaa
Photos: Ira Heinonen and Pia Husu-Vierimaa
Can a summer job be such a great experience that you want it to be your future profession? Or have the positive experiences from your father’s first job been passed down to you in your bloodline?
Europress is a family company, but did you know that Service Director Pasi Koljonen and Design Engineer Miko Koljonen have more in common than golf? Father and son both work at Europress, one responsible for service and the other for designing the world’s most advanced waste management equipment.
Pasi Koljonen graduated from Helsinki Polytechnic as a Mechanical Engineer in the late ‘90s and began applying for jobs after graduation. He was recruited as a service technician at Europress.
Despite not knowing anything about the company beforehand, Pasi was convinced during the job interview. When he got to know the job, he recognised the work ethic and good team spirit that Europress employees often mention.
Since then, Pasi’s career has been on the up, from service technician to supervisor and production engineer, manufacturing manager, service manager and production manager. Pasi has been Service Director for the past six years.
His days are spent supervising nearly fifty employees, attending meetings, drafting service agreements and meeting customers. Of course, the number of face-to-face customer meetings has decreased since the Covid years, as today meetings usually take place online using Teams or by phone.
Positive exuberance
What has kept Pasi at his first job for almost 30 years?
“I would say it’s a combination of the low hierarchy, smooth communication between departments, our focus on achieving results, and clear goals for every day and month,” Pasi says, listing the important factors that support job satisfaction.
Pasi refers to the positive exuberance that describes the Europress spirit, which is about moving forward, taking your own initiative and not stopping to worry about things. It is rewarding to do work at Europress that customers appreciate, always thanking for the good service.
Pasi’s own experiences also encouraged his son Miko to join Europress. Pasi wants to guide Miko to take initiative and act boldly. Even if things do not always go as planned, it is never a good idea to stay in one place and give up.
“We don’t get to meet so often since we work in different departments and no longer live at the same address, but when we do, it’s nice to exchange ideas with Miko. During the golf season, we get to see each other more often. The whole family enjoys playing golf together,” says Pasi.
Miko has become a very talented golfer and he now teaches Pasi, even though his father has been playing golf for almost 20 years and Miko only for four.
Design Engineer Miko Koljonen works with his father Pasi Koljonen at the same company but in different departments. Miko designs waste management devices, while Pasi is head of the Service Department with a team of 50.
Miko’s path to becoming a design engineer
Miko Koljonen graduated from Häme University of Applied Sciences as a Mechanical Engineer and joined Europress as a summer worker in 2022.
Miko’s final project was on automation design for Europress. Having followed his father’s work at Europress his entire life, Miko became really interested in working at Europress. He was totally drawn in by his job and the support of his great colleagues, and all other job opportunities were put to one side.
“Many small details and safety aspects required by regulations also require a lot of attention in the design work.”
Many small details
Miko Koljonen works as a design engineer in Europress’s engineering department. His workdays involve research and development, customer-specific customisations for waste management devices, design meetings, and meetings with sales representatives from both the Finnish organisation and subsidiaries.
Miko confirms that he learned his work ethic and diligence from his father. The best things about working at Europress, Miko says, is the great team spirit and the rewarding experience of seeing the results of your own work.
Design engineering requires focusing on many small details. To users, all waste management devices probably look the same, but Mikko was initially surprised by how much variation the design work requires. Many small details and safety aspects required by regulations also require a lot of attention in the design work.
“I also enjoy the annual Europress golf tournament, where I have been able to get to know colleagues from other departments, as well as meet customers and network.”
Miko hopes to see himself at Europress in ten years – the Europress path marked out by his father is off to a good start!
“I learned my work ethic from my father,” Miko says.
Expressive 1/2025
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