Norway's Moelven ByggModul AS is bringing back over 300 employees it laid off last autumn, signaling a sharp reversal for the construction tech firm. Approximately 80 workers returned this week, with the rest scheduled to follow in the coming weeks. The recall is driven by several new orders and a positive market shift, according to company leadership.
This marks a dramatic turnaround from late 2023. At that time, record-low building activity forced the modular producer to furlough more than 250 staff. The company's factories, part of one of Europe's largest timber engineering groups with 3,200 employees across 40 sites in Norway and Sweden, were operating at half capacity.
A CEO's Relief and a Strategic Pivot
Lene Vedal Moore, the acting CEO, said full order books are the direct cause. "We have taken on commitments to customers in the short and medium term, which means our order books are full," Moore explained. "We therefore need that capacity to be able to deliver on what we have promised."
The company is now slated to deliver modules for several large projects in Norway and across the Nordic region. It has also secured a new contract in the Faroe Islands. This diversified project pipeline has provided the stability needed to recommit to its workforce.
Moore described the impact of refilling the factory. "It means everything to get the team back together. It has been dreary, as they say, to look into the factory and see the line standing still, running at half machine. So filling that factory up again means everything."
The Human Impact of the Recall
For the returning workers, the recall ends months of uncertainty. Sebastian Berge Otterstad, a 21-year-old production worker, was among those who returned last week. "It feels very good. I've missed it. I really like this job," Otterstad said. "So it was really great to be able to come back."
He had waited nearly three months and had begun to fear he would need to find other work. "At one point I thought I would have to get another job, when I saw that not many orders were coming in," he shared. "So that was quite tough. I am grateful for this job."
Colleagues who remained employed during the downturn have expressed relief at the renewed activity. The return of their co-workers has brought life back to the facility, ending what Moore called a "stusslig" or dreary period.
Cautious Optimism and Future Hiring
While Moore assured that all furloughed employees will get their jobs back, the company is taking a measured approach to scaling up. Moelven will also hire 15 temporary positions as it ramps up production. This strategy reflects a careful optimism about the sustainability of the recovery.
"We have such good control over what is coming up that we can keep everyone in work," Moore stated. "But as we now pace up to that shift, we are doing it with temporary employment for the time being, until we are completely sure that this is a trend and not a peak."
This phased recall and conditional hiring highlight the fragile nature of the construction sector's recovery. Companies are navigating between seizing new opportunities and protecting themselves from potential future downturns.