In the picture, from left to right: Panu Kilpinen (Hansel), Piia Ollila (MSH), Kalle-Pekka Lehti (NESA), Ilona Hatakka (MoI), Satu Alanko (MSH), Kirsi Kujanpää (Hansel), Eeva Lindroos (Hansel), Heli Hietala (Hansel) and Tuula Luoma (MoI).

Hansel’s procurement expertise valued by rescEU projects

The rescEU stockpiles are shared strategic reserves funded by the EU. Finland’s rescEU stockpiles are significant in size, with a combined value of EUR 305 million. Hansel’s joint procurement has been utilised in the procurement of the stockpiled products.

Finland is hosting two EU-funded stockpiles, which together form the Finnish rescEU project package. The establishment of the first one, a CBRN stockpile, started in 2023. A tendering procedure for some of the personal protective equipment (PPE) for the stockpile was successfully arranged through Hansel’s dynamic procurement system for PPE. A medical/CBRN project was launched in 2024 to stockpile medical equipment and medicines in case of a serious accident or emergency. Mikko Matikkala from the National Emergency Supply Agency and his team, who were working on the project application, decided to turn to Hansel for the tendering.

“We came to the conclusion that our joint procurement for laboratory products complied with some of the requirements, but we did not have a suitable joint procurement process for healthcare products. The social importance of the matter was quite clear to us, which is why we reacted immediately. Our goal was to build a joint procurement procedure that would serve not only this project but also our other customers,” says Kirsi Kujanpää, a category manager at Hansel.

Preparations for the joint procurement of healthcare supplies and equipment were quickly started. Joint procurement provided the framework for putting out to tender the products needed by the project. A project team was set up for the tendering. The core team members were Ilona Hatakka from the Ministry of the Interior, Kalle-Pekka Lehti and Ellen McMahon from the National Emergency Supply Agency, and Piia Ollila and Satu Alanko from the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health. Hansel was represented by category manager Heli Hietala and procurement specialist Eeva Lindroos. The tight schedule required flexibility from everyone, which welded the project team together.

“It was a huge project for which the close cooperation within the team provided real added value. The project is an excellent example of what cooperation in public procurement can achieve at its best,” says Hatakka.

Market dialogue increased understanding between the parties

The tendering procedure for the project started with a market dialogue with the suppliers. The active dialogue continued throughout the preparation of the tendering and was considered important by all parties.

“The market dialogue increased the understanding of both the buyer and the tenderers. For us, the dialogue highlighted what we needed to focus on in terms of the procurement object, while the tenderers received sufficient information about both the products to be procured and the procurement goals, which ensured that we obtained excellent bids,” Lindroos explains.

Successful implementation of the procurement project required a multidisciplinary tendering team consisting of specialists from different fields. Each specialist offered the team their own substance, culture, practices and expertise from their sector. Changes could not be avoided in such a large project, but it still went ahead according to plan and on schedule. That is why the Hansel project team was praised by the other parties for its flexibility and professional approach.

“The Hansel project team was key part of the whole undertaking, and we worked together as partners. If you did not know how to proceed, they always found a solution. You cannot praise the service and their professional attitude enough,” Lehti says.

“Hansel deserves a heartfelt thanks for its flexibility, regardless of the changes. Cheerfulness, patience and composure are perhaps the best adjectives to describe the Hansel specialists.” Mikko Matikkala, the National Emergency Supply Agency

Common goal led to an excellent outcome for rescEU procurement

The project team is satisfied with the outcome of the tendering, both in terms of the products and the costs. The excellent cooperation is likely to continue at the next stage of the project.

“Sometimes, the final result is more than the sum of its parts. The project team did an excellent job in identifying and utilising the project members’ roles and competence. Despite the schedule pressures and complexity of the project, we achieved an excellent outcome together,” says Satu Alanko from the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health.

Panu Kilpinen from Hansel, who is responsible for security authority customers, echoes the praise.

“The project also did its part in supporting the goals of the network of security authorities and promoted interaction across administrative branches. We are always developing our joint procurement services and procurement models according to the needs of our customers – in this case the security authorities. The joint procurement of healthcare supplies and equipment is a good example of how joint procurement takes into account emergency preparedness requirements,” Kilpinen says.

The joint procurement for healthcare and supplies, which was originally set up for the rescEU project, is open to all contracting entities.

“There is no need to keep reinventing the wheel. Now other operators can also benefit from the joint procurement, which will help to centralise resources and thus reduce costs,” says Mikko Matikkala from the National Emergency Supply Agency.

The EU’s shared disaster response reserve rescEU

The European Union’s rescEU system consists of various disaster response reserves. There are two rescEU reserves in Finland:

A CBRN reserve in case of chemical (C), biological (B), radiological (R) and nuclear (N) threats and accidents.
A Medical/CBRN reserve in case of cross-border health threats, accidents and emergencies.

The preparation of the stockpiles and related procurement is carried out by a consortium led by the Ministry of the Interior, comprising the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, the National Emergency Supply Agency and the Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority. The National Emergency Supply Agency is responsible for the procurement of the equipment specified for a project, as well as their storage, logistics, maintenance and recycling throughout the project period.

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