From forge to light industry ...

Kristian Tokvam Tokvam established the firm in 1958 in a new, 120 sq.m workshop. In the beginning he did repair and maintenance for local farmers. His small business was colloquially mentioned as “the Tokvam smithy”. Kristian Tokvam had previously constructed and built a snow blower in the basement at his parents-in-law’s farm.

Snow-blowers
Snow-blowers have been the company's main product from the very beginning. Through the 60's the annual production was between 300 and 400 snow blowers. During the winter, the company “borrowed” employees from a local construction firm. At its peak there were 15 employees working in the company. The snow blowers were manufactured at daytime – and painted late evening and night in the same building.

Tokvam Stone Picker
In the late 60's the company developed the Tokvam Stone Picker – this was something new in Norway at the time. The 60’s was an era for cultivation. It was a political goal to cultivate more land to increase Norway’s self-sufficiency rate. The need for stone removal in a simple manner was present. After a lot of struggle and setbacks a successful machine was produced. Approximately 90 pickers were sold through the mid-70's. Kristian Tokvam ran the workshop until 1977, when he took over his father-in-law’s farm, producing grain and hogs.

The next owners were his son Edvard and his wife Kirsti (current co-owners of the company).
New snow blowers were developed – with features such as straight side wings and hinged paddles at the impeller shaft. Tokvam snow blowers got a reputation as one of the best snow blowers, with a unique ability to handle both firm and slushy snow. In the late 80’s there were less snow in Norway – consequently sales dropped. In this difficult period Tokvam found new markets – the “climate change” had led to more icy roads. A hydraulic driven sand- and grit spreader was developed and produced in great numbers. In the 90’s the first two-stage snow blower was developed.

In 1997, Tokvam entered into a partnership with Cifi – originally a union of Case IH dealers in Norway. By 1998 Tokvam had existed for 40 years without interruption. It was converted from a sole proprietorship to a limited company, with the family as shareholders. Kirsti Tokvam took over as managing director;  her husband Edward continued as a production manager and chairman.

In 2000, the company stands in front of their largest single investment. As a result of the markets demand for their products Tokvam had struggled with capacity problems for several years. To increase the production capacity it was decided to invest heavily the coming years. An automatic 3.5 kW laser cutting machine and a computerized Press Brake was installed over the next few years. The machines are designed for in-house production and for sub-contracts. Including a recently-completed building, the total area is approx. 1500 m². The number of employees is 8.

In 2007 Tokvam signed a distribution agreement with Lantmännen Machine in Sweden. The agreement will strengthen Tokvam’s presence in the Swedish market significantly. The company has from 1999 to 2007 quadrupled the turnover.

2011. Investing in new coating plant and assosiated assembly is Tokvams AS' next step to strengthen their competitiveness. A 1750 sqm building, that includes the industry's most modern production equipment and lay-out for coating and assembly. With this investment Tokvam further increases their focus on quality and efficiency.

The products are in continuous development. After a short time in the market of road maintenance equipment for compact machines, Tokvam is already a leading player .