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Refrigeration Specialist Timo Koivisto: 30 years at Lumikko

In the spring of 1995, newly graduated refrigeration technician Timo Koivisto walked into Lumikko’s factory on Kylmätie and asked for a job. It was a time of economic recession but luck was on his side: a week later he received the call saying “Welcome aboard.”

Now, in 2025, Timo has seen a long journey in the refrigeration industry.

“When I arrived, the transition to HFC refrigerants was underway. Now I’m experiencing the biggest refrigerant shift of my career, as we move toward natural refrigerants,” he explains.

He has hands-on experience even with those new refrigerants: Lumikko’s first devices using carbon dioxide as the coolant were built in the early 2010s.

“At Lumikko, we’ve always embraced challenges without prejudice. We’ve built hundreds of units. One of the best moments is when a machine ends up far away in the south and ten years later someone calls to ask for spare parts. That’s when you see the quality.”

A good team and lifelong learning

Timo’s career began in production; after five years, he moved on to test-running the equipment leaving the factory. From there, his career progressed into product development.

“In the early days we’d build the machine first, test it, and only then draw the final schematics. Today it works the opposite way — and that’s a good thing. Machines are designed from drawings, and through simulation we already get reliable estimates of performance before physical testing.”

At Lumikko, the team has grown significantly but some co-workers from 25–30 years ago are still around. As the company expanded, product development got its own dedicated hall, right next to the factory.

“Every day I still learn something new, and I have new ideas to improve product development as we grow. The refrigeration industry is fascinating and I highly recommend it.”

Thanks to Timo for his work so far — and congratulations on a remarkable 30-year career at Lumikko!

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