From mill to market: Building customer value through distributor partnerships

Transparency and knowledge as business assets

The best customer experience is achieved when the entire value chain can support product specification and correct use in real projects. For Multiplacas, that means combining product expertise with a partnership model built on open communication, clear expectations, and the ability to address challenging topics early. This creates trust on both sides and makes it easier to react quickly to shifting demand, new project requirements, and market changes.

Metsä Wood’s technical and sales teams can support Multiplacas with more complex design scenarios and even support Multiplacas in key customer meetings on a case-by-case basis. These joint discussions with architects, engineers, and builders help translate Kerto LVL’s structural possibilities into local solutions, so decisions can be made faster and with greater confidence.

"Kerto LVL is a technical product, and its successful entry into a market depends on the expertise and commitment of our local partner," says Jyrki Uimonen, Sales Development Director, Kerto LVL at Metsä Wood. "We invest time in the market. By making joint visits to Multiplacas' customers, we can address structural questions and share best practices directly. This hands-on support helps local professionals feel more confident in choosing different Kerto LVL products for their structures."

Strengthening the local market position

For Multiplacas, manufacturer support is a commercial advantage: it helps the team sell solutions, not only materials. When customers can access technical guidance and credible product data, Kerto LVL is easier to specify and procure, especially in projects with tighter structural requirements. The partnership also improves availability. By maintaining local stock, Multiplacas can supply Kerto LVL quickly across Portugal, supporting shorter lead times and more predictable site schedules.

Ricardo Fernandes, Commercial Manager at Multiplacas, explains the value of this cooperation: "Our customers appreciate that we can offer both high-quality materials and the necessary technical insight. Having the support from Metsä Wood’s technical experts allows us to help our customers with structural calculations and reliable advice for even more challenging projects. The regular visits from the Metsä Wood team help us build long-term trust with Portuguese designers and contractors. Furthermore, the transparency we share with Metsä Wood, being able to discuss all aspects of the business openly, is what makes this partnership truly resilient."

Case Wood Houses by Fernando Reis – Restoration project in Ericeira

A concrete example of this collaboration is the restoration of a century-old house in Ericeira, led by Wood Houses by Fernando Reis. This challenging renovation project demonstrates how Kerto LVL is an ideal solution for modernizing historical buildings. In this project, entirely new floor structures were built between the levels using Kerto LVL S-beams as the framework, topped with Kerto LVL Q-panels.

The use of Kerto LVL provided significant structural advantages, such as achieving long spans with relatively thin product dimensions while ensuring a strong and stable structure that surpasses the capabilities of traditional mass timber in this application. Multiplacas played a crucial role in the project’s success by providing the products on a fast schedule directly to the construction site. This case perfectly illustrates how the partnership between manufacturer and distributor delivers tangible value, enabling demanding restorations to be executed with high-performance timber solutions.