History – Terhi

Photo of Terhi boats from the past: Terhi 310, Terhi 480 and Terhi 375.

The Terhi success story: – High-Quality small boats with over 50 years of experience

The story of the Finnish-made Terhi boats began back in 1972 when the President of the Republic at the time, Urho Kekkonen, inaugurated the boat factory in the small fishing parish of Rymättylä. Less than two years later, the factory had already produced over 10,000 Terhi boats. However, this was just the beginning of the success story.

It all started with an outboard engine

The Terhi brand was founded in the mid-1950s when Valmet Oy began producing Terhi outboard engines. The responsibility of retailing and marketing the outboard engines was given Korpivaara Oy, a Finnish company which was founded in 1917. In the mid-1960s, Korpivaara Oy began designing its own boat series with the goal of manufacturing durable quality boats in large series. Initially, the Terhi boats were made of fiberglass. The fiberglass boats were manufactured by various subcontractors until 1972.

In 1971, Korpivaara Oy founded the subsidiary Konemuovi Oy, which began mass-producing Terhi boats a year later. At that time, ABS plastic was chosen instead of fiberglass as the manufacturing material. As the first European boat manufacturer, the company dared to invest in an all-new manufacturing technology centered around ABS plastic. ABS plastic, or Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene, belongs to the styrene plastics category, but its impact durability and chemical resistance are significantly better than those of polystyrene. ABS plastic is a rigid, impact- and weather-resistant plastic that is easy to process and maintain. The material is both strong and durable, yet surprisingly lightweight. The first ABS plastic boats were the Terhi 240, Terhi 310 and Terhi 390, all of which quickly became popular and were exported to 11 countries.

Korpivaara Oy was sold in 1984 to the Amer Group, from which the boat factory broke free and became an independent company in 1992. The company was unsurprisingly named Terhi Oy. In the mid-2000s, in 2005, Terhi Oy was acquired by the Finnish family-owned Otto Brandt Group, under which the company still operates today. The Otto Brandt Group has nearly 115 years of experience in recreational vehicles, boat manufacturing and import. Joining the Otto Brandt Group provided Terhi with a strong foundation for continued growth and development.

Growth of the product family

At the beginning of 2009, Terhi Oy acquired the rights and molds for the Sea Star boat series, owned by Port Arthur Oy from the Turku region of Finland. The Sea Star series consisted of cabin boats and open fishing/access boats out of fiberglass, primarily used by access boat users in the archipelago. Originally, the Sea Star boats were handmade using traditional methods in Ostrobothnia.

At the end of the same year, Terhi Oy continued its expansion by acquiring Silver Veneet Oy, situated in Etseri, which manufactured so called AluFibre motorboats that combined aluminum hulls with fiberglass interiors. Silver Veneet Oy had begun boat manufacturing nearly 20 years earlier in 1991, and was one of the first boat manufacturers to combine durable marine aluminum with fiberglass. Through this acquisition, the Otto Brandt Group’s position in the boating industry was further strengthened.

The name change to TerhiTec Oy took effect at the beginning of 2010, with the goal of clarifying communication and distinguishing the company’s name from the Terhi boat brand. In 2013, the production of Sea Star fiberglass boats was also moved to the factory in Etseri. Today, TerhiTec Oy manufactures Terhi ABS boats in Rymättylä and pure aluminum boats as well as AluFibre boats under the Silver brand in Etseri. Silver boats made entirely of fiberglass are manufactured by Fenix Marin Oy in Valkeakoski. The production of Sea Star boats gradually ceased after the middle of the decade.

The company is currently to our knowledge the only factory to have successfully manufactured small boats in ABS plastic, motorboats in pure aluminum, recreational boats entirely in fiberglass, and AluFibre boats that combine aluminum and fiberglass – all while respecting Finnish expertise and boatbuilding traditions.

Photos of current Terhi models: Terhi 480 Cabin, Terhi 390, Terhi 480 TC and Terhi 400 C.

Terhi now and in the future

In the design of the Terhi boats, beauty was combined with functionality right from the start. These boats with unsinkable hulls laid the foundation for the phrase ‘practical boats’ in its truest sense. After the Terhi engines disappeared from the market, the boats manufactured in Rimito continued to proudly bear the Terhi name, which according to our sources, originates from a particular Finnish beauty. Terhi is a popular girl’s name in Finland, and celebrates its name day just two days before the Terhi factory was inaugurated, on February 6th. The boats are tailored for Nordic conditions but are increasingly seen even further abroad. Today, Terhi boats are exported to over 20 countries, although the main market still inremains in Scandinavia.

After more than 50 years and well over 235,000 boats manufactured, Terhi is undoubtedly the largest boat manufacturer in the Nordic region and the only European manufacturer of ABS boats. Markets, technologies, needs and tastes have changed over the years, but Terhi always stays afloat and continues to follow the same basic principles as from the beginning.

The Terhi success story: – High-Quality small boats with over 50 years of experience

Terhi now and in the future

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