Danish safety products manufacturer Oppenhejm & Jansson has chosen to expand by setting up production operations in Panevėžys, Lithuania. The company has announced plans to establish a production facility in the city, creating around 150 new positions for specialists in product design, logistics, packing and production.
Oppenhejm & Jansson produces bandages, plasters, and other items for first-aid kits, as well as reflective products, personal reflectors and safety vests. Its first-aid kits and Safety vests come as standard with Volvo, Renault and Tesla vehicles, and are supplied to international security firm Falck Security. It also produces kits for IKEA. The majority of the company’s products are currently made at its facility in China. The new Lithuanian unit will be used to finalise the production process, including improving product and package design, and tailoring products to the specific needs of clients.
It is this capacity to respond to changing market demands which attracted Oppenhejm and Jansson to Lithuania, according to the company’s CEO Ulrich Oppenhejm. “As we can see from our previous experience, in order to expand and enter new markets, it is very important to be close to them. In this way we can be more flexible and respond to our clients’ needs faster,” Mr Oppenhejm explained. “Among the locations that we were considering in this region, Lithuania seemed to be the best solution. The convenient location, well-developed logistics, good price to quality ratio, and the assistance provided by Invest Lithuania helped us take the decision.”
According to Lithuania’s Minister of the Economy, Evaldas Gustas, Panevėžys will benefit greatly from the wealth of experience the Danish company has, and from the new opportunities the facility will create for a wide range of specialists. “The unit will employ not only designers and producers, but also packers and logistics specialists. This is a perfect combination for this region, as it means jobs are being created for employees with different skills sets and at different stages of their careers.”
Employees at the new unit, and the community in general, are also set to benefit from Oppenhejm & Jansson’s commitment to being a socially responsible company, both in terms of its own units and in the partners it chooses to work with. As a member of the Business Social Compliance Initiative (BSCI), a leading international business initiative, working conditions in the company are regularly evaluated by independent auditors. Any company belonging to the BSCI commits to meeting the international standards for working conditions set out in the initiative.
Lithuania is increasingly reaping the rewards of the rapidly growing global trend for nearshoring, according Mantas Katinas, general manager of Invest Lithuania (a semi-state agency that specialises in encouraging foreign direct investment). “A few years ago, many international companies were looking first and foremost for the most attractive price when considering foreign investment locations,” commented Mr Katinas. “Today everyone understands that convenient logistics, the possibility to flexibly respond to clients’ needs, and being close to key companies in the market, have become more important than price. Lithuania is a country that has much to offer in this respect. For companies that are seeking to expand into the Scandinavian or CEE markets, Lithuania is attractive both for its geographical location and for its well-developed logistics network connected to the Port of Klaipėda.”
