Metso Outotec's network of 40 distribution centres will be reduced to 18 as part of an "optimised" new distribution model that aims to increase availability, improve customer service and decrease CO2 emissions, said the firm.

A spare and wear parts warehouse in Tampere, Finland, is one of the facilities that will be closed as part of "consolidating and outsourcing" plans for the country. However, a new warehouse will be established in Helsinki.

The company also pointed to new facilities built in Shanghai and Pheonix as examples of how its new streamlined global model will work.  

"Our target is to enable world-class logistics with easily scalable operations," said Jarkko Aro, senior vice president of customer logistics.

"Flexible, state-of-the-art warehouse operations will allow orders to be collected and dispatched to customers directly from central warehouses. The new model enables considerable savings in the end-to-end freight costs, streamlines transportation, and significantly reduces CO2 emissions."

 Aro noted that the company had achieved a 7% year-on-year reduction of CO2 emissions in logistics by the third quarter of 2020.