Whether you're interested in weekend shifts or a career path with career progression, Transval offers hands-on experience, training and good opportunities for advancement in material handling and logistics.
When Arttu Pentikäinen came home from the military service at Sodankylä Jääkäriprikaati in 2007, he had no clear vision of his future studies or work. The young man, who had attended the Reserve Officers' School, enjoyed playing guitar and drums in a band, but was still looking for his own instrument on the working side. As he neared homecoming, Pentikäinen's first goal was to get a job. However, he had no secondary education and his work experience was limited to stevedoring in the port of Raahe. At the end of his service, his future plans were open.
However, Pentikäinen had always been interested in aviation and aeronautics. During his military service, he conveniently moved to Vantaa, where the attractive working environment at Helsinki-Vantaa Airport was close by. Pentikäinen actively sought employment and found a job at Transval in the logistics sector within a short time frame. "I arrived on Friday and started work the following Tuesday," Pentikäinen recalls.
At Transval, he took the most direct route to the job and his lack of experience didn't slow him down. The young man, who had completed his leadership training, quickly realized that the knowledge he had gained in the transport company would also be useful in the logistics sector. Soon after starting as a freight forwarder, Pentikäinen jumped on the booms of numerous different types of machinery as he was trained to use them in his daily work.
On the air cargo side, he became familiar with the counterbalance forklifts used to unload and load cargo, as well as the various airport belt conveyors used to transfer cargo to aircraft. Pentikäinen says that the size of the counterbalance forklifts he used ranged from the smallest 1.5-tonne capacity electric forklifts to large diesel-powered 10-tonne forklifts. When winter came, a wheel loader was also needed. Despite its large size, the wheel loader is smooth to manoeuvre and steering the machine comes naturally, especially for those who have driven larger forklifts. The wheel loader is often used for maintenance work in terminals and on the industrial side, but also in warehouses. Far from being used only to move air cargo, Pentikäinen's machine skills also expanded later in his career.
Logistics is linked to everything
Pentikäinen, who now works as a production manager at Transval, has been in the industry for over a decade. He has been able to progress his career upwards, gaining further training and practising both physical loading tasks and his role as a supervisor. "After leaving home, I worked in construction logistics for five months, then in aviation logistics for ten years." Since then I have worked in general logistics and even returned to the world of cargo ships.
As he gained experience, Pentikäinen began to realise the sheer number of opportunities the sector offers.
"There is a lot of training and career continuity on offer. The work is very flexible and there are jobs available 24/7. We offer summer jobs, full-time and part-time jobs," says Pentikäinen.
Pentikäinen mostly moves around in the Helsinki region, but Transval offers work in several locations around Finland. Tasks range from shelving services in grocery stores to packing industrial components. Pentikäinen hopes that employees will strive to develop and seek further training at Transval on their own initiative. At Transval employees can complete courses such as basic and specialist vocational qualifications, Lean Six Sigma training or, for example, precision training for a lorry driver's licence.
"If you feel the slightest bit like you want a change, all you have to do is grab your manager by the sleeve and ask where you can get more training or experience."
Pentikäinen wants to encourage young people looking for a direction to give logistics a chance. In today's competitive job market, the importance of varied work experience is greater than ever, and that's exactly what Transval offers.
Are you interested in working on a forklift truck or other logistics jobs? Take a look at our vacancies and apply.
