Oras (company)

Oras Ltd
TypeLimited company
Founded1945 (1945)
FounderErkki Paasikivi
Headquarters
Rauma
,
Finland
Area served
Europe
Key people
Kari Lehtinen (CEO)[1]
ProductsFaucets, Showers, Technical valves
Revenue€131.1 million (2012)
OwnerOras Invest Ltd.
Number of employees
920 (2012)
Websitewww.oras.com

Oras Oy is a Finnish manufacturer of bathroom and kitchen faucets.[2] The company was founded in Rauma in 1945 by Erkki Paasikivi.[3] Oras is the fourth largest faucet manufacturer in Europe, and it holds 30–80 percent of the market share in Finland.[4] The company has two factories, which are located in Olesno, Poland and Rauma.[2][5]

Overview

Oras' head office is located in Rauma and its production facilities are located in Finland, Poland, Germany and the Czech Republic.[6] In 2012, it employed approximately 920 people in Europe, of which approximately 600 employees and white-collar workers in Finland.[7] The raw materials and production components are also primarily sourced from Europe. Oras has its own sales organization in more than 15 European countries. Oras' most significant brands are Oras and Hansa.[8]

In July 2025, it was announced that Oras acquires Gustavsberg and Vatette business from Villeroy & Boch.[9]

History

Oras was founded in Rauma, Finland, on 8 May 1945 as a small metal workshop established by Erkki Paasikivi, Irja Paasikivi and Irja's father Kosti Oras.[10] In its early years, the company operated from a cellar workshop and initially carried out general metalworking and repair work before moving into products for the building-services sector.[10] Oras entered the HVAC field in 1947 with radiator connectors, and began faucet production in 1951, a change that became the basis of its later specialization.[11][12]

During the 1950s and 1960s, Oras expanded its manufacturing in Rauma. The company established its own foundry in 1955 and brought chrome-plating in-house in 1963, which supported larger-scale faucet production. Production and office operations were gradually centralized in larger facilities in Rauma, and the company grew with the post-war building boom in Finland.[12]

A major product milestone came in 1976 with the launch of the Safira single-lever faucet, which became one of the company's best-known products and strengthened its position in the Finnish market.[12] In the following decade, Oras began expanding outside Finland through acquisitions. It acquired Goswin & Co. in Germany in 1982, the Finnish company Osy in 1983, and Lyng Armatur in Norway in 1984.[11][12] In 1996, it expanded its manufacturing base further by acquiring a faucet factory in Olesno, Poland.[12]

In 2013 Oras acquired the German faucet manufacturer Hansa. The transaction doubled the group's size and led to the creation of Oras Group, combining the Oras and Hansa brands.[13] In 2025, Oras Group expanded its brand portfolio again when it completed the acquisition of the Gustavsberg and Vatette businesses and brands from Villeroy & Boch, adding those brands and related Nordic operations to the group.[14]

References

  1. ↑ "Oras Management Team". Retrieved August 1, 2025.
  2. 1 2 "Oras at a glance". Oras. Archived from the original on May 19, 2012. Retrieved May 3, 2012.
  3. ↑ Vahe, Juha (September 5, 2008). "Vuorineuvos Pekka Paasikivi (1944–)". Kansallisbiografia (in Finnish). Finnish Literature Society. Retrieved May 3, 2012.
  4. ↑ Kullas, Emilia (October 12, 2007). "Paasikiven iloiset velikullat tarttuvat Kemiraan". Talouselämä (in Finnish). Talentum. Retrieved May 3, 2012.
  5. ↑ "Oras keskittää tuotantoaan Raumalle ja Puolaan" (in Finnish). Yle. December 7, 2010. Retrieved May 3, 2012.
  6. ↑ "Oras Group".
  7. ↑ "Oras - Yrityshaku". Taloussanomat. Sanoma News. Archived from the original on March 21, 2012. Retrieved April 28, 2011.
  8. ↑ Valtiovarainministeriö: Tuottavuuden pyöreä pöytä jakoi vuoden 2011 tuottavuusyhteistyökunniamaininnat Archived 2011-04-07 at the Wayback Machine, 28.3.2011
  9. ↑ "Oras Group to acquire Gustavsberg and Vatette business from Villeroy & Boch Group".
  10. 1 2 Repo, Harri (2021-07-03). "Oras aloitti sodan jälkeen kranaatin kuorien työstämisellä ja eteni hanoihin, mutta yritysostot eivät menneet putkeen". Tekniikka&Talous (in Finnish). Retrieved 2026-05-18.
  11. 1 2 Hagner, Börje (2015-10-24). "LVI-ALAN HISTORIAKOOSTE" (PDF). Retrieved 2026-05-18.
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 Herranen, Timo (2015). "Family Business, Faucet Company, Industrial Owner" (PDF). ISBN 978-951-1-29697-3. Retrieved 2026-05-18.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: periodical has ISBN (link)
  13. ↑ "Oras kaupoilla Saksassa". Yle Uutiset (in Finnish). 2013-09-17. Retrieved 2026-05-18.
  14. ↑ Havusto, Hanna (2025-07-11). "Gustavsberg-pöntöt siirtyvät suomalaisomistukseen". Helsingin Sanomat (in Finnish). Retrieved 2026-05-18.


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