Elcoline helps ensure warm homes in Riihimäki
Riihimäen Kaukolämpö Oy produces district heat for 20,000 people in Riihimäki. Since 2021, Elcoline has been involved in making sure that there are no frostbites, faults or disturbances in the district heating plant.
Riihimäen Kaukolämpö heats the homes of approximately 20,000 Riihimäki residents. Elcoline ensures that there is a steady supply of heat and ensures that the customer has sufficient resources even at different peak times, such as during maintenance. Photo: Elcoline.
Elcoline is responsible for Riihimäen Kaukolämpö’s O&M functions, i.e. operation and maintenance. Elcoline’s task is to ensure that the district heating plants function properly, maintenance is carried out as planned and fault situations are responded to quickly.
“From our operational perspective, operation and maintenance are, of course, very important – it is quickly visible to our consumer customers if there is no heat,” says Antti Eskola, Managing Director of Riihimäen Kaukolämpö Oy.
Riihimäen Kaukolämpö has been a customer of Elcoline since 2021, when operation and maintenance became Elcoline’s responsibility with the acquisition. Since then, the jobs have been competed twice, but each time Elcoline has proven to be the best partner.
”We have always had an external cooperation partner in charge of operation and maintenance. An external partner guarantees us the flexibility of resources – for example, we do not need to dimension our own personnel according to large maintenance, but we can get resources suitably when needed,” Eskola says.
45 years of experience on the site
Elcoline’s team employs 1 + 4 people full-time, that is, one foreman and four district heat installers. The exceptional thing about the team is that one of the installers, Asko Kulmala, has worked in the production area of Riihimäen Kaukolämpö for more than 45 years.
“His workplace has not changed, even though the employer’s logo on the jumpsuit has changed. You could say that Asko knows Riihimäen Kaukolämpö inside and out, which of course brings significant experience and expertise to the customer,” says Mikko Patjas, Regional Manger of Elcoline Power Oy.
Thanks to a team of five, Riihimäen Kaukolämpö is able to focus on its core business and smartly dimension its own resources. For example, when major disruptions and investments require it, the necessary additional workforce is provided by Elcoline employees. The team is on site during office hours, so to speak, from Monday to Friday. There is an on-call service in the evenings and weekends, when the site can be reached with a 30-minute response time if necessary.
”It is important to us that the quality of work and cooperation is in order. Thanks to weekly meetings and the maintenance system, everyone is aware of where we are going. It’s about commitment,” Eskola sums up.
The team is assisted by two vans and a new electric car. Most of the work is done in city conditions, so an eco-friendly and quiet electric car is a good and practical means of transport. Photo: Elcoline.
What Elcoline does:
- Weekly inspections
- Monthly inspections
- Annual maintenance
- Fault and disturbance reapirs
- Tank measurements
- Meter replacements
- Manhole maintenance
- Preventive maintenance
- Reporting
- Sampling
- District heating network design
- District heating network maintenance
- Collaboration with stakeholders
- Supervision of electrical systems and pressure equipment operations