Visites d'entreprises
Kronospan was founded in 1897 and is a global company that has been leading the wood-based panels industry for over 120 years. Today, Kronospan operates 41 technically advanced manufacturing sites worldwide and serves customers in almost 100 countries. Kronospan Luxembourg was established in 1994 in Soleuvre and produces woodbased panels such as MDF, OSB, Laminate Flooring, and more recently Particleboard and Melamine Faced Boards. Delivering to local customers in Western Europe or across the continent and beyond, Kronospan redefines excellence in the wood-based panels industry. With continuous investments, the factory in Luxembourg is one of the most modern and the first climate-neutral production site of its kind. All recent installations implemented since 2017 are designed with one goal: the circular economy, targeting waste-free production with the least possible environmental impact. Kronospan Luxembourg have integrated into its production site different installations to generate renewable energy, boasting three Combined Heat and Power plants, using biomass and wood waste at the very end of its useful life and photovoltaic panels on the available roof space. Its facility is self-sufficient in renewable energy, with the balance being exported to the grid. The company counts 550 employees in Luxembourg and 14.000 worldwide. Interview with Alex Gambroudes, Director.
(Visited 26 July 2024).
Your greatest success?
Over the years we have had many successes however the most notable in recent years has been our investments in renewable energy, boasting three Combined Heat and Power plants and photovoltaic panels that cover the available roof space. This commitment has made the facility self-sufficient in renewable energy. In addition, the energy not utilised in the plant, is exported to the grid, contributing significantly to Luxembourg's renewable energy landscape.
A major failure?
We have not had any major failures, however the Covid period was certainly a period of extreme difficulty with the need to overcome many challenges, for which there was no existing handbook. Keeping the staff healthy was the first and most important challenge followed by adapting to a market for our products which went from panic and no demand for the first weeks of the pandemic to unprecedented demand for products used in DIY and home improvements as click and collect and home working kicked in. This put a strain on availability, logistics and infrastructure and as a business, we had to adapt daily. Looking back it was a fantastic learning curve for us as individuals and as a business.
Future projects?
The site in Luxembourg was established in 1994. Fast forward to 2017 and we embarked on an investment programme which has transformed the site into the most modern climate positive site of its kind. The investment programme continues with the construction of additional value added production lines and in an automated warehouse to support our growth and goal to offer the best availability and service with a comprehensive product range with delivery within 48 hours.
What do you think differentiates you from your business competitors?
Wood is naturally a very good product in terms of CO2 storage so our industry in very advanced in sustainability. However, with our investments in renewable energy and the high use of recycled wood in our products, Kronospan has a distinct advantage in our sector. The available product offer and flexibility of available sizes boasts another advantage as from our site in Luxembourg we are able to deliver an unrivaled mix of products and sizes both locally in Western Europe and further afield.
Your vision of entrepreneurship?
Entrepreneurship is essentially about identifying opportunities, taking risks and creating value. This can be achieved either by starting your own business or from within an existing established business like Kronospan and many others. It’s about having the vision to see beyond the status quo, the courage to pursue new ideas and the resilience to overcome obstacles.
An advice to give to a budding entrepreneur?
Believe in yourself. Entrepreneurship is a journey of self-discovery. Step into the unknown and have the courage to overcome the obstacles that will undoubtedly get in your way. What’s the worst that can happen, Failure. The best learning comes from failure. If your venture succeeds, congratulations, now build a good team fast as you cannot do it alone.
What difficulties do you currently face?
How do you overcome them? The biggest challenge is recruiting people and in particular apprentices. Our industry is not considered as an attractive option, it’s a large-scale manufacturing plant and while people may not be naturally drawn to us, once you start, the challenges and opportunities to develop are incredible. I started as a graduate trainee in our factory in the UK and am now responsible for the factory in Luxembourg. There are many examples like this in our business, across the 41 factories worldwide and if you are ambitious and willing to invest time in your development, there is few better opportunities.
