Framery is developing next-generation office technology in their facility in Tampere. They design and manufacture soundproof, smart workspaces and office pods suitable for phone calls, focused work, meetings, and conferences.

Today, Framery's workspaces can be found in places like Finnair's VIP lounges, Microsoft's offices, and the premises of the Finnish gaming superstar Supercell.

Suitable seals are a crucial part of a quality workspace: they help ensure soundproofing and affect nearly every aspect of the modules, from style to usability.

“The greatest quality factor of our workspaces is truly reliable soundproofing. It's 'easy' to build a tight and insulated space – but air must also be able to circulate, and the acoustics must be good,” says Saara Oldén, the Procurement Manager at Framery.

OT-Kumi manufactures a wide range of customized seal models for Framery, developed in collaboration with their designers through multiple tooling rounds.

In addition to prototype production, the final models are refined to be functional even in volume production.

 Pioneer of soundproof spaces

The office pod industry is crowded with competitors, but the unbeatable quality and usability of Framery's modules have made them a market leader.

Their workspaces stand out in terms of quality, usability, and sustainability. This quality is made possible by a highly developed process:

“Our product development process has had a lot of thought put into it: we invest in the ventilation, lighting, and, of course, soundproofing of our pods. Our materials must also be high quality to ensure our products have a long lifespan and can be modified even during their use,” says Saara.

“We don't want to rest on our laurels; we constantly develop new things to ensure our products have the best possible functionality and user experience.”

The right seal ensures reliable soundproofing

Well-designed seals are an essential part of a quality pod:

“Seals ensure the tightness of the workspace and significantly contribute to soundproofing,” says Tomi Havunen, Product Development Engineer at Framery.

We design and manufacture various sealing solutions for Framery.

When designing workspace seals, we consider different factors like different hardness levels and when the best-performing seal is a multi-component solution containing both hard and soft materials.

And since the workspaces are delivered to the customer as assembly kits, the seals must also be easy to attach. This often means that the seals need to be placed with adhesive tape.

“As a supplier, OT-Kumi has proven to be a flexible and fast partner: they can deliver prototypes quickly, so we can test different seal models' functionality promptly,” Tomi says. “This is very important for product development.”

Our quality requirements for seal production are stringent. In addition to soundproofing and ease of installation, we consider factors such as the functionality, appearance, feel of the seals, and how nicely the workspace door closes.

 High quality is ensured through close cooperation

At the beginning of our collaboration, we made several visits to Tampere to learn about the pods the seals are made for and Framery’s production process. Framery's team has also visited our factory in Ii. These meetings have been excellent opportunities to discuss how to best solve various sealing challenges related to the modules.

“OT-Kumi has very friendly contacts, and I always feel welcome when visiting Ii,” says Nuutti Rissanen, Framery's Supplier Development Engineer, who oversees the quality of delivered seals. “Our questions are always answered quickly, and we can trust that the quality is consistently high. This significantly eases our workload.”

Close cooperation in product development is crucial for maintaining quality:

“Our long-standing cooperation with OT-Kumi has intensified further with new product development and launches. The service has been excellent, and our product development department has always received the necessary prototypes and samples,” says Saara.

“Our product development department constantly needs new types of seals. Here, OT-Kumi's fast tool manufacturing and delivery capabilities have been first class,” Tomi adds.

“We also make extensive use of OT-Kumi's expertise in product development. They have a lot of experience in the sealing industry.”

 Meeting customer needs with 30 years of experience

We specialize in designing seals that are tailored to customer needs. To make this possible, we’ve perfected our design and production processes, and we can now produce, for example, extrusion prototypes very quickly using computer modeling and 3D printing.

We continually innovate our working methods and look for ways to incorporate new technologies into our operations to offer our customers the best possible service.

“We wouldn't have gotten this far without a partner that can keep up with our speed. We sometimes make very rapid and impressive moves, so partners like OT-Kumi are very important to us,” Saara summarizes.