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The purpose of this paper is to reveal how the prices, costs, and logistics develop in the case mill and how these variables correlate with profits, and finally to give suggestions for improvements.

A typical Finnish paper mill is selected for the basis of the case study. The complete data for the mill for the years 2001 to 2007 at a monthly level are used. The data are obtained from the mill's financial management system and transferred to Excel. Statistica 4.1 software is used to run the statistical correlation analyses. The results can be generalized with certain limitations to paper manufacturing located at a long distance from its customers.

This paper gives an important insight into the economics of the Finnish paper industry. From theory‐building point of view, the empirical process data show that the variation in production lines is minimal, but there are important variations in paper deliveries. A lot can be gained in the logistics processes. Larger volumes delivered in tons also tend to increase profits. From the mill to the consignees, fluctuations in the process and paper sales grow substantially, which indicates longer storage times.

The results of the case study are based on the data of a single large integrated paper mill in Finland covering the years 2001‐2007, so the results cannot be directly generalized to concern all Nordic paper mills. In May 2005, there was an industrial blackout, which considerably affected the production and deliveries of all Finnish paper mills in that year.

The competitive advantages of the Finnish paper industry are undermined by low paper prices and costly logistics. The mill managers should increasingly focus on overcapacity and cost issues and also deliver volumes, which all could contribute to higher profits.

In this paper, the Finnish paper industry is studied through a time series, economic geography, and statistical tools. This approach is a novel method and gives new insights into this research object. The mill's economic variables, such as paper prices, profits, and logistics and manufacturing costs, and the characteristics of these issues in a spatial context are studied.

The purpose of this paper is to assess electronic information transfer in logistics organizations. The paper approaches information transfer as an elemental component of contemporary business to business (B2B) processes.

The empirical material concerns companies that together comprise a logistical chain. The paper uses interview data to show information exchange patterns within one particular logistics chain. The interviews were designed according to current topics in information management literature and analyzed with content analysis.

The results show the need to enhance information distribution in B2B operations. In addition, business to government operations rely, to a large extent, on a combination of paper and electronic information distribution. The government interface should also be recognized: customs and information exchange is a major time consumer in international transport.

The empirical analysis of a logistic chain is not an easy task. This is due to the confidential nature of the business information that has to be acquired. Companies do not want to reveal too many details regarding their B2B relations: the interviewed companies gave information on data exchange on a general level only. For example, the goal of determining information content was affected by the reluctance of companies to discuss their business processes.

Three main components to a large extent determine the success of information and communication technologies implementation in the logistics business process. These are: reliability and interoperability that are achieved through standardization. This paper exemplifies these difficulties with empirical data from Finland. It also provides insight into how to carry out similar studies in different settings.