KWH Group

KWH Group is a Finnish family-owned industrial company headquartered in Vaasa, in the Ostrobothnia region. The group’s modern structure dates from 1984, when Oy Keppo Ab acquired the shares of Oy Wiik & Höglund Ab. Rather than operating as a single consumer-facing brand, KWH Group functions as a house of industrial businesses, with specialist subsidiaries serving manufacturing, construction, logistics and food-supply customers. The group’s historical roots reach back to 1929, when Emil Höglund and Edvin Wiik founded Wiik & Höglund to trade round timber, pit props and pulpwood. The business became a significant Finnish timber exporter before moving progressively into plastics. It began plastics activity in the early 1950s, produced plastic pipes from 1955 and developed large-diameter polyethylene pipe manufacturing. During the 1960s, Wiik & Höglund withdrew from timber and shipping to concentrate on plastics, acquiring businesses and production capacity in the sector. A second foundation came from Emil Höglund’s fur-farming activities. Oy Keppo Ab was established in 1954 after Höglund and Karl Johan Tidström acquired Keppo mansion. Keppo developed extensive mink and fox farming and in 1963 acquired Mirka, an abrasives company that had moved from Helsinki to Jeppo. Mirka later became the group’s most internationally prominent operating business. The group ultimately divested its mink and fox-farming operations during restructuring in the late 1980s and early 1990s. KWH’s principal contemporary activities are organized into four divisions. Mirka manufactures coated and non-woven abrasives, polishing compounds, surface-finishing solutions and sanding equipment. Its development of dust-free sanding technology helped differentiate the business in professional and industrial markets. KWH Logistics provides forwarding, stevedoring, shipping-related and logistics services through subsidiaries including Rauanheimo, Stevena and Galea Shipping. KWH Freeze provides frozen-food storage and related cold-chain services. KWH Invest manages strategic shareholdings and industrial real estate and includes Prevex, a manufacturer of water traps and related plumbing components. The group also played a major role in the Finnish infrastructure-pipe sector. KWH Pipe received substantial investment during the group’s restructuring and expanded its manufacturing footprint internationally. In 2013, its infrastructure business became part of Uponor Infra, a joint venture in which Uponor initially held 55.3 percent and KWH Group held 44.7 percent. KWH Group sold its remaining stake to Uponor in 2023, ending the ten-year cooperation. Mirka has expanded beyond Finland through organic growth and acquisitions, including the 2017 acquisition of Italian precision-grinding specialist Cafro. By 2025, Mirka had subsidiaries in 20 countries and had added manufacturing capacity in the United States. KWH Logistics also continued international expansion, including Rauanheimo’s entry into Sweden in 2025. In 2024, KWH Group ranked among Finland’s largest companies by turnover and employers, although it remained a privately owned family group rather than a publicly traded corporation.

KWH Group’s history combines two Finnish family-enterprise traditions: the timber and plastics business developed by Wiik & Höglund and the fur-farming, investment and industrial portfolio assembled by Keppo. Wiik & Höglund was founded in 1929 by Emil Höglund and Edvin Wiik to trade round timber, pit props and pulpwood. During the late 1930s it grew rapidly and became one of Finland’s major timber exporters. War conditions interrupted much of its export activity, but post-war trade resumed with customers in Western Europe. The company reinvested earnings in fixed assets and forestry before changing direction toward plastics. Wiik & Höglund entered the plastics sector in 1951 and began manufacturing plastic pipes in 1955. It was also an early Finnish producer of expanded-polystyrene sheets. During the 1960s, it exited timber and shipping activities and concentrated on plastics. The company acquired the Jakobstad-based plastics competitor Nars and later purchased, together with Finlayson, the polyethylene-pipe manufacturer Muovitehdas in Ulvila. Its engineering work included the production of increasingly large plastic pipes; in 1964 it produced what is described as the world’s first 600-millimetre-diameter pipe. The Keppo side of the group began with Emil Höglund’s fur-farming venture. He started farming mink in 1937, and Karl Johan Tidström became a second owner in 1943. In 1954, Höglund and Tidström bought Keppo mansion and established Oy Keppo Ab. Keppo developed a very large mink and fox-farming operation, with production reaching its peak in the 1970s. The company diversified into industrial assets and logistics-related infrastructure, including the acquisition of Mirka in 1963 and the purchase of a refrigerated ship for transporting mink feed in 1966. Keppo acquired the shares of Oy Wiik & Höglund Ab in 1984, forming KWH Group. During the late 1980s and early 1990s, the new group reorganized its portfolio and divested its mink and fox-farming activities. Management focused investment on KWH Pipe, KWH Plast and KWH Mirka, while other activities were gathered under KWH Invest. KWH Pipe expanded internationally and received a major strategic redirection when its infrastructure operations were combined with Uponor’s business in Uponor Infra in 2013. KWH also developed its logistics, cold-storage and plumbing-component businesses. It became a co-owner of water-trap manufacturer Prevex in 1984 and acquired full ownership in 2003. In 1987, it acquired the frozen-storage company Etelän Jää–Söder Is and renamed it KWH Freeze. These businesses became part of the group’s continuing Finnish industrial and service platform. Mirka was renamed from KWH Mirka in 2016 and became the group’s central global manufacturing brand. It developed dust-free sanding technology and expanded its product range into abrasives, polishing, sanding equipment and broader surface-finishing systems. The acquisition of Italian precision-grinding company Cafro in 2017 strengthened its position in precision applications. By 2025, Mirka operated subsidiaries in 20 countries and had expanded manufacturing in the United States. KWH Logistics likewise continued to internationalize, including Rauanheimo’s move into Sweden in 2025. KWH Group remains a family-owned, privately held Finnish group. Its current portfolio is organized into Mirka, KWH Logistics, KWH Freeze and KWH Invest. In 2016, the Finnish Federation of Family Businesses recognized it as Family Business of the Year.

• 2023

  Exit from Uponor Infra

  [1]KWH Groupen.wikipedia.org

  KWH Group sold its Uponor Infra holding to Uponor.

• 2017

  Cafro acquired

  [1]KWH Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Mirka acquired Italian company Cafro to strengthen its precision-grinding offering.

• 2016

  Family Business of the Year recognition

  [1]KWH Groupen.wikipedia.org

  The Finnish Federation of Family Businesses named KWH Group Family Business of the Year.

• 2013

  Uponor Infra begins operations

  [1]KWH Groupen.wikipedia.org

  KWH Pipe’s infrastructure activities were combined with Uponor’s corresponding business in a joint venture.

• 2003

  Prevex becomes wholly owned

  [1]KWH Groupen.wikipedia.org

  KWH Group acquired full ownership of water-trap manufacturer Prevex.

• 1987

  KWH Freeze created

  [1]KWH Groupen.wikipedia.org

  KWH acquired Etelän Jää–Söder Is and renamed the frozen-storage business KWH Freeze.

• 1984

  KWH Group formed

  [1]KWH Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Keppo acquired Wiik & Höglund, creating KWH Group.

• 1964

  Large-diameter pipe milestone

  [1]KWH Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Wiik & Höglund produced a 600-millimetre plastic pipe, described as a world-first at the time.

• 1963

  Keppo acquires Mirka

  [1]KWH Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Oy Keppo Ab acquired Mirka, the abrasives business that later became KWH Group’s leading international operating company.

• 1954

  Keppo established

  [1]KWH Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Emil Höglund and Karl Johan Tidström founded Oy Keppo Ab after acquiring Keppo mansion.

• 1951

  Entry into plastics

  [1]KWH Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Wiik & Höglund began developing plastics activities, marking its transition away from a primarily timber-based business.

• 1929

  Wiik & Höglund founded

  [1]KWH Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Emil Höglund and Edvin Wiik established the timber-trading company that later became one of the foundations of KWH Group.

A privately owned Finnish industrial house built around specialist businesses, engineering know-how, international B2B markets and long-term family ownership.

• Abrasives and surface finishing · 1963

  Mirka abrasives and finishing systems

  Mirka manufactures coated and non-woven abrasives, sanding equipment, polishing compounds and related surface-finishing solutions. The business is particularly associated with professional dust-free sanding technology, which combines abrasives with extraction and equipment to reduce airborne dust during finishing work. Its portfolio serves industrial manufacturing, automotive, woodworking, construction and repair applications. Mirka is KWH Group’s most internationally developed operating business, with subsidiaries and production activity in multiple regions.

• Plumbing components

  Prevex water traps

  Prevex manufactures water traps and related plastic plumbing components. The business forms part of KWH Invest and represents the group’s continuing presence in specialized plastics manufacturing. Its products are used in drainage and plumbing installations, where compact design, flow performance and reliable odor protection are important functional requirements.

• Forwarding and logistics

  KWH Logistics services

  KWH Logistics is a group of forwarding, stevedoring, shipping and supply-chain businesses. Its companies include Rauanheimo, Stevena and Galea Shipping. Services support industrial cargo, port operations, maritime transport and related logistics needs. The division has expanded beyond Finland, including activity in Sweden through Rauanheimo.

• Cold storage · 1987

  KWH Freeze

  KWH Freeze provides frozen-food storage and associated cold-chain services. It originated in KWH’s acquisition and renaming of Etelän Jää–Söder Is in 1987. The business supports food logistics by maintaining temperature-controlled storage capacity for frozen products.

• Plastic infrastructure products · 1955

  KWH Pipe

  KWH Pipe developed and manufactured large-diameter plastic pipes and related infrastructure solutions. The business received substantial investment during KWH Group’s restructuring and established production internationally. Its infrastructure activities became part of Uponor Infra in 2013, and KWH Group exited the joint venture in 2023.

• 2023

  Sale of Uponor Infra holdingM&A

  Background

  KWH Group had retained a minority interest in Uponor Infra for approximately ten years.

  Action taken

  KWH Group sold its shareholding to Uponor.

  Aftermath

  The transaction ended KWH Group’s participation in the infrastructure joint venture and left its portfolio focused on Mirka, logistics, cold storage and investments.

  Source

• 2013

  Formation of Uponor InfraM&A

  Background

  KWH Group and Uponor sought to combine their infrastructure businesses to create a larger international pipe and infrastructure platform.

  Action taken

  KWH Pipe and Uponor’s infrastructure business were placed into Uponor Infra, with Uponor holding 55.3 percent and KWH Group 44.7 percent.

  Aftermath

  The joint venture began operations in July 2013 after competition authorities and the Market Court reviewed the arrangement.

  Source

• 1984

  Creation of KWH Group through acquisitionM&A

  Background

  Oy Keppo Ab and Oy Wiik & Höglund Ab represented two established Finnish family-business platforms with complementary industrial and commercial assets.

  Action taken

  Keppo acquired the shares of Wiik & Höglund, forming KWH Group.

  Aftermath

  The combined group reorganized its portfolio and concentrated investment on plastics, abrasives, logistics, cold storage and strategic holdings.

  Source

1. 1KWH Groupen.wikipedia.org