On a late winter day in 1999, two middle-aged men in suits suddenly appeared at Färghuset's premises on Åsavägen in Oskarshamn. These were the sales manager for Akzo Nobel Industrial Coatings in Northern Europe and his key account manager for Scania.
They told the owner, Göran Karlsson, about things like sequence changes, OTP, short lead times, etc. After a few minutes, he said: "I don’t know what you’re talking about, but if we can make money from it, we’re in!"
A month and several meetings later, Göran, along with his son Anders, traveled to Malmö to see Akzo’s Sege facility.
After gaining a good insight into how to manufacture paint according to Scania’s strict tolerances, they informed Akzo that they were ready to set up as a satellite in Oskarshamn.
During the summer of '99, a paint kitchen of about 20 square meters was built at Färghuset's premises. In September, the paint kitchen went into operation with the first order from Scania's Cab Factory in Oskarshamn.
