Hanna-Leena Koivuranta is responsible for operating Outokumpu cargo liners and the management of contract and freight transport operations in conjunction with her colleague. Every year, more than 500 cargo ships operate via the Port of Roytta.
Port operators are an important link in the supply chain of Outokumpu’s stainless steel products to get them to the customers and finishing plants around the world. Mother coils and other stainless steel coils are transported the few minutes’ journey from the mills to the port by cargo trucks. The load is then lifted onto dock ramps and then put oonto cargo liners by crane.
”We make sure that our ships do not stand idle, but leave on time and with a full load,” Hanna-Leena says. ”The process flows well, thanks to our excellent cooperation with the mills, the port’s clearing agents and stevedores.”
Moving forward with learning and experience
”I appreciate it that I can learn a lot, all the time, acquiring new knowledge and experience in my job. Schedules are tight, and many factors are at play. If something goes wrong, there can be a domino effect setting off unforeseen consequences all along the chain. We must pay close attention to weather conditions as well. Recent winters have been manageable, but in 2011, for instance, the thick ice cover hampered cargo traffic for quite some time.”
The ships carry mostly mother coils which are shipped to Terneuzen in the Netherlands for further finishing. Space permitting, loads are complemented by customer deliveries to Europe, transit steel and ferrochrome.
”It typically takes 4–5 days forour cargo liners to reach Dutch shores. On the return, the ships often carry scrap metal for steel raw material or other steelmaking materials such as coke.”
Hanna-Leena, who holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Operations, started at Outokumpu in 2003.
”I started as a temporary export coordinator and moved on to many different positions in financial management. Now, as of January 2017, I’m back in export and logistics. I’ve come full circle, and the experience I have acquired in all the different roles is now a great advantage for me. I have built a good network of people and have deepened my knowledge of steelmaking and the steel industry in general.”
Biography: Hanna-Leena Koivuranta makes sure that steel products leave Tornio for their destinations on time and on schedule. In her spare time, she enjoys downhill skiing in Lapland and traveling. She is also an ice hockey mom of two active boys. Northern Finland and Sweden have already become very familiar territory during her sons’ ice hockey trips and tournaments.