With some 900 employees at 17 production facilities, VIDA AB is Sweden's largest privately owned sawmill company. Production ... is primarily focused on structural timber for a large assortment of different markets. Around 85% of production is exported to Europe, USA, Australia, Africa and Asia. Sales of sawn wood products are via a sales company, VIDA Wood. Operations also include the manufacture of packaging, pellet manufacture, house manufacture and biofuel trading. The plants are strategically located near forest owners in the Småland and Västra Götaland regions of Sweden. Since 1999, the group has grown rapidly. Over the past seven years, turnover has quadrupled with maintained profitability. Via its own purchase company (VIDA Skog), VIDA buys most of its raw materials from private forest owners. A total of around 3 million m3 solid timber excluding bark is acquired annually. In recent years, to reduce costs in an increasingly competitive global market, the group has strongly specialised the operations of its various units. Over the same period, there has been heavy investment in logistics. The group's own train and own distribution warehouses in a host of countries are some of the results of this. read more