United Tiles developed, manufactured and marketed ceramic tiles and clinkers for flooring and walls in homes and public environments. United Tiles consisted of the manufacturing companies Partek Höganäs in Sweden, Pukkila in Finland, Richetti in Italy, and Klingenberg in Germany. The company was owned jointly with the Partek Group of Finland.

The market for ceramic building materials was relatively mature. Demand from the professional building sector was to a large extent dependent on economic conditions and was governed by activities in the building and repair and renovation sector. United Tiles’ main markets where the Nordic region and southern Europe. However, during 1994 United Tiles’ most expansive markets were Germany, the U.S. and the Far East. The consumer market for ceramic products was growing throughout the world, a trend that was particularly beneficial to United Tiles in the Nordic region, a market in which the company traditionally holds a strong position.

The restructuring of United Tiles was carried out in two stages. In connection with the formation of the company, a comprehensive restructuring program was initiated, which was designed to shorten production lead times and consequently cut production costs, while at the same time utilizing the synergies between the producing companies. During 1994, Renzo Arletti became company president. During the second stage, restructuring work focused mainly on the coordination of logistics functions in the Nordic region by concentrating inventories to two warehouses.

In addition, the tile product range and marketing organizations in the Nordic region were coordinated. United Tiles will be well equipped to meet the increase in demand when the professional building market in the Nordic countries turns upwards again. Professor Signe Persson-Melin, a ceramics specialist from Konstfack, was invited to join the students and Robert Weil to visit the Italian tile manufacturer Ricchetti, part of the United Tiles AB.