Nov 06, 2012. /Lesprom Network/. Vapo Oy plans to reorganize the business organizations of Vapo Bioheat, which is responsible for peat production and wood energy in Finland, and Bioheat, which is responsible for heat and power generation and district heating, as the company said in the press release received by Lesprom Network. In the present model, the activities of Vapo Biofuels are divided into a nationwide production organization and four sales territories. The nationwide organization of Vapo Bioheat has been responsible for six large power plants and around 100 heating plants around Finland. Vapo’s pellet business has come under the Vapo Wood Products business area together with Vapo Timber Oy, which manages Vapo’s sawmills. The planned change to the organization does not affect Vapo Timber Oy or Kekkilä Oy. The reorganization is not aimed at cuts in person work years or personnel costs, rather the focus is on better customer service by bringing decision-making closer to customers. In the new operating model, Pasi Koivisto heads the Vapo Peat Products business area, which is responsible for planning and development of peat production as well as permits and planning the after-use of areas released from peat production. Energy wood and pellets make up the new Vapo Wood Energy business area, headed by Juhani Ylä-Sahra. Vapo Wood Energy’s responsibilities include nationwide procurement of wood by-products and pellet plant output. The Vapo Heat and Power business area is responsible for the operation of Vapo’s six power plants generating heat and power and the district heating networks connected to them, and for optimizing and developing the business. The business area is headed by Markus Hassinen and has production plants in Forssa, Salo, Lieksa, Ilomantsi, Sotkamo and Haapavesi. It is planned that the management of the Heat and Power business area as well as the support and development functions will be centralized at Vapo’s Vantaa site. The managers of the business areas report to the CEO of Vapo Oy, Tomi-Yli-Kyyny. Vapo Oy is setting up a joint field organization for its businesses with customer responsibility, headed by Customer Relations Director Mikko Osara. Under the plan, Finland will be divided into six customer regions with earnings responsibility, in charge of sales and supplies of fuels and heat to customers in their region. In order to develop the business at the consumer and single-location level, current pellet and environmental peat sales will be combined. According to the CEO of Vapo Oy, Tomi Yli-Kyyny, the reorganization is designed to deliver growth and better customer service by devolving business responsibilities and decision-making as far as possible to regional organizations based on natural customer needs. In future the regional organizations will sell all the products of Vapo Oy, which will remove unnecessary overlaps and increase efficiency. The reorganization has a strong element of skills development throughout the organization; changes to job descriptions are bound to raise skills needs and offer employees genuine possibilities for advancement. Because this is a very significant reorganization of its operating model, Vapo will start employee consultations in accordance with the Act on Cooperation on 8 November 2012. The aim is to have the new organization up and running by 1 January 2013. According to Tomi Yli-Kyyny, the operational reorganization is not about cutting costs through staff reductions, but enabling growth through efficient optimization of resources and better customer service.