Handmade in Sweden since 1981

Åre Skidfabrik

Ready for the future

We have been manufacturing skis and snowboards since 1981 and both founders, Stefan Cederberg and Patrik Söderlund, are still working full-time in the factory. This core competence, along with a small team of very experienced and passionate ski builders allows a flexible and high-quality production.

In 2020 we made the single largest investment in our 40-year history. This consists of a significant extension with increased production area, an energy efficiency solution with recycling of the production’s excess heat, and two new machines for increased efficiency and even higher quality of the skis. This makes Åre Skidfabrik one of the world’s most modern ski factories. See the video for a glimpse of our production.

 

 

Expanding to meet greater demand

The reason for this investment is a long period of growth for both Extrem Skis and the other ski brands that Åre Skidfabrik manufactures for. We proudly produce skis for Norwegian SGN SkisStereo Skis and Moonlight Mountain Gear for american Rocky Mountain Underground. The latest ski brand that started its production at Åre Skidfabrik is Swedish 1000 Skis. The high quality of the skis, combined with numerous international awards that the ski brands continuously win, has created a great demand.

To meet this increased demand, as well as to make the factory even more competitive, Åre Skidfabrik has now expanded its production area by 50%. In addition to greater capacity, one of the main reasons is higher production efficiency, where the expansion provides the opportunity to optimize the flow of production and more room for machines.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Innovative heat recycling

Åre Skidfabrik has always run its business with 100% renewable energy from Jämtkraft‘s local hydropower stations. In connection with the extension, conditions were provided for replacing the old heating system and implementing a major energy efficiency improvement. Together with experts in the field, we have developed a completely unique ventilation solution that recovers the excess heat from the ski presses.

“It’s absolutely fantastic” says Patrik Söderlund, who is the factory manager and co-founder, and continues, “With the excess heat from these two machines, we can heat up our entire factory building during working hours without adding any extra energy.”

In addition to this innovative solution, we have drilled 1000 m deep energy holes for a new waterborne geothermal heating solution. The combination of these two energy-smart systems means that Åre Skidfabrik has reduced its energy consumption by a total of 70 % per square meter.

 

 

 

 

Sustainable Production

In addition to manufacturing all skis with 100 % renewable energy, as well as running an energy-optimized factory, we meet many other criteria in sustainability.

All production takes place in Sweden with its strict rules and laws regarding working environment, as well as waste and chemical management. In addition, Åre Skidfabrik uses an epoxy system unique to the ski industry, Pre-Preg, which was originally developed for the aerospace industry. This means that all glass and carbon fiber material is mechanically impregnated at the supplier and that no employees need to handle liquid epoxy, which is otherwise normal in the ski industry. In addition to these positive aspects, Pre-Preg also means that the quality of the skis is higher as the epoxy is distributed perfectly in the skis, as well as the skis become lighter in weight.

“If you look at the big picture at Åre Skidfabrik, I do not think you can manufacture skis in a more sustainable way than we do today” says Carl Geijer, CEO and co-owner, and continues “This is something we are very proud of and also something I believe our customers value highly.”

 

Machine investments for increased efficiency and quality

After several years of evaluating grinding machines, Åre Skidfabrik finally chose the market's most advanced grinding robot from Montana, Switzerland. This investment means further improvement of the skis’ grinding results and the quality is now among the highest within the ski industry. On top of this the productivity has significantly increased.

To increase the efficiency of ski manufacturing, Åre Skidfabrik has invested in another machine from American Eastman Diecuts, which is the world leader in the manufacturing cutting tables for material production. Åre Skidfabrik uses this machine to cut fiberglass, carbon fiber, running bases and topsheets with the absolute highest precision.

An award-winning company

A proof of Åre Skidfabrik's positive development are the two prestigious awards during the autumn. First, the company was named Gazelle Company 2020 by Dagens Industri, which is the largest Business Magazine in Scandinavia. An award for the fastest growing companies in Sweden where less than 1% of limited companies meet the requirements. A few weeks later, the company was named Entrepreneur of the Year Jämtland-Härjedalen 2020 by the organization Företagarna and is now in the Swedish final together with the other 20 regional finalists.

"It's almost 40 years since we made our first snowboard at home in our parents' garage." says Patrik Söderlund, and concludes ”Today we are stronger than ever before and could not be more prepared for the future.”

 

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