Technopolis Celebrates Its 30th Anniversary Today

TECHNOPOLIS PLC PRESS RELEASE March 22, 2012 at 9:00 a.m.

Technopolis Celebrates Its 30th Anniversary Today – Celebrations to Take Place in Oulu

It is Technopolis’ 30th anniversary, and the company will celebrate in its home city of Oulu. The company started in an old dairy in Oulu, and over its three decades of operations it has increased its balance sheet total 3,000-fold, and the number of people working at its facilities 140-fold.

”The success of Technopolis year-on-year has been based on the company's successful core strategy. The strategy has laid down a stable foundation for rapid growth, and there has not been any need for annual adjustments to operations. The company’s activity as a transparent part of society based on an ethically sustainable value base has given Technopolis a good reputation among its stakeholders,” says Pertti Huuskonen, Chairman of the company’s Board of Directors, who also served as the company’s CEO in 1985–2008.

Technopolis Plc started out as Oulun Teknologiakylä Oy in March 1982. It obtained its first premises, with a floor area of 4,000 square meters, in late 1982 when it leased the premises of an old Valio dairy in Heinäpää, Oulu. The official inauguration was held in March 1983. At the time, there were 24 companies with 140 employees doing business at the red brick building full of history of dairy production. Three decades later, there are more than 20,000 people and 1,300 companies doing business at Technopolis business environments in three countries.

It was clear to Technopolis from day one that it would expand its operations. The first step was taken in Oulu, with the company opening premises in Linnanmaa in 1986. The area, located in the vicinity of the university, was ideal for the growing electronics industry. Even today, the area can be justifiably considered the cradle of Finnish knowledge-intensive economic growth.

The company currently operates in eight Finnish cities: Oulu, Espoo, Vantaa, Helsinki, Tampere, Kuopio, Jyväskylä, and Lappeenranta. There are several premises in each city, and the company has a total of 18 campuses, two of which are outside Finland. The investment decision on the Pulkovo airport campus in St. Petersburg, Russia, was made in 2008, and the premises opened for business in 2010. A joint venture, Technopolis Ülemiste, was established in Tallinn, Estonia, the same year. Both campuses will be expanded in 2012. The floor area of the expansions totals more than 40,000 square meters, with a total value of over EUR 70 million.

”Technopolis’ own growth story is also a story of the rise of the Finnish knowledge-intensive economy. It has been great to be part of this miracle of growth. In recent years, the structure of the economy has been undergoing a change, and so has Technopolis. The company is still very much growth-oriented, and we are seeking new growth from new sectors and abroad. We are full of excitement and looking confidently forward to the future,” says Keith Silverang, President and CEO.

More information:

Pertti Huuskonen, Chairman of the Board of Directors
Tel. +358 400 680 816, e-mail: pertti.huuskonen@technopolis.fi

Keith Silverang, President and CEO
Tel. +358 40 566 7785, e-mail: keith.silverang@technopolis.fi

Kari Arokylä’s book Kertomus kasvusta (A Story of Growth, in Finnish) is available on request via
info@technopolis.fi or +358 46 7120000

Technopolis Plc is a listed company that specializes in real estate, leasing business premises, and services. Its key business concept is to combine modern business support services with modern business premises and offer its customers business environments that can be adapted as required. There are approximately 20,000 people and almost 1,300 companies and organizations in Technopolis premises in Finland, Russia, and Estonia. The company’s net sales for 2011 totaled EUR 92.8 million, and its EBITDA was EUR 47.5 million. The Technopolis Plc share (TPS1V) is listed on NASDAQ OMX Helsinki.