Category Archives: Manufacturing

Galanz Largest Microwave manufacturer

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Galanz Enterprises, founded in September 28th, 1978, is a world-class integrated white goods brand enterprise, and one of the most influential leading enterprises in the Chinese household electrical appliances industry.

Galanz has the world’s largest microwave oven R&D and manufacturing center, as well as the world’s leading manufacturing facilities of professional air conditioners, refrigerators, washing machines, dishwashers, electric ovens and other household appliances.

In the flexible production line at the 4.0 base of Galanz Group, there are 17 robots on each production line, and a microwave oven chamber can be off the line every 6.7 seconds. The production line is controlled by computer digitalization, and different production modes can be switched instantly.

Galanz connects all links of the industrial chain through digital enabling. It used to take more than 20 days for a microwave oven to complete the production when receiving an order from the market, but now the process can be shortened to 7 days, labor efficiency has been improved by 40%, and order delivery time has been shortened by 67%

Beko new eco appliances

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Beko unveiled seven sustainable products including a washing machine/washer dryer, oven, tumble dryer, refrigerator, espresso coffee maker and dishwasher to help consumers reduce their impact on the environment. The innovative products use recycled materials such as such as PET bottles, fishing nets; bio-composites such as coffee residue and eggshells; as well as detergent saving technologies for sustainable living.

At the event, Beko shared a Europe-wide survey on people’s attitudes and concerns about sustainability. Its results show that the vast majority of Europeans (UK 88%, IT 88%, ES 87%, DE 84%, FR 78%, PL 74%) of the six countries asked said they feel it is their personal responsibility to make a difference by minimizing waste, water and energy use in their daily lives. The number of people thinking it is down to others, such as the government or business, or who think that they cannot make a difference, is negligible.

Recycling is found to be the most popular activity linked to sustainability that people practice at home. Interestingly, this activity scores significantly higher in the UK market at 84% compared to all others, with Italy coming closest at 78% and Germany last at 66%.

When asked what else they could do to protect the planet, respondents list in order of effectiveness, buying sustainable products, fighting food waste, reducing air travel and eating less meat. The main obstacle to living more sustainably at home is found to be the perception of high prices of sustainable products in all countries.

Price is the most important decider when buying a home appliance, with longevity and environmental friendliness coming in after, despite most of the respondents (IT 88%, ES 86%, FR 85%, PL 84%, UK 77%, DE 75%) agreeing on the importance of purchasing sustainable home appliances that have a meaningful positive impact on our planet.

Hakan Bulgurlu, CEO of Arçelik, said, “Our goals in sustainability and our leading efforts in innovation are two great parts of the same whole. Their evolution depends on each other. It is up to us to find better, more environmentally conscious ways of conducting our lives. With a series of eco-friendly Beko appliances, customers can now fully equip a sustainable home.”

Arçelik’s CMO, Zeynep Yalım Uzun added “Beko’s brand purpose is empowering future generations to live healthier lives, which is only possible by living more sustainably and working towards a healthier planet. All our actions and every product we use has an impact on nature. So, beyond this seven-product portfolio, we are eager to adapt our existing technologies to make all our appliances more environmentally friendly too. For Beko, this is only the beginning.”

“At Beko, we are passionate about democratizing technology, making it affordable and ensuring that as many people as possible have access to it. By making sustainability a business model and integrating it into everything we do, we strive to reduce human environmental damage through developing high-performance, durable, affordable home appliances that are also eco-friendly”, said Arçelik’s CCO Ragıp Balcıoğlu.

”We have to protect and preserve the environment for future generations and now, more than ever, we must act and make changes in this direction. Beko has taken this step and we are proud to offer Romanian customers access to ground-breaking products that will help them lead a sustainable life. We actively support the group’s mission on sustainability and have integrated this component as a vital part of our business model, and the production unit in Ulmi, the only 4.0 factory in Romania, represents our commitment in this direction”, said Murat Büyükerk, Chief Arctic Executive Officer.

Products with recycled materials for the planet:

EcoTub Washing Machine & Washer Dryer*

  • Plastic waste transformed into a valuable alternative raw material
  • Approximately up to 60 recycled 0.5L PET bottles used in the tubs of washing machines and washer dryers on certain models
  • Recycled PET flakes used along with other plastics and additives without an effect on the tub’s effective performance
  • World’s first example of this type of application in home appliances
  • This eco-friendly new manufacturing method significantly lowers carbon dioxide emissions
  • Since the beginning of this project in 2017, 58 million plastic bottles have been recycled with a reduction of CO2 emissions by almost 2,200 tons.

EcoFiber Oven

  • A sustainable material from recycled fishnet waste and industrial thread waste
  • 5% recycled fishnet waste and 65% industrial thread waste used in plastic parts such as door decor plastic and display cover
  • 50% of the BI Oven inner display cover made from industrial thread waste

GreenDry Tumble Dryer

  • Uses recycled plastic in 15% of its plastic parts on average, including in the water tank housing and back cover
  • In the past two years, 2,420 tonnes of plastic were recycled for this cause.

Products with bio-composites for the planet:

BioCycle Refrigerator

  • Durable components composed of bio-based plastics
  • Egg trays made from eggshell wastes and bioplastics
  • Each fridge’s two egg trays** contain eggshell waste from 5 eggs.
  • The fan cover is 100% bio-based plastics (33gr) from sustainable resources such as corn starch or sugarcane
  • The door seal is 25% bio-based (soybean oil) materials (195 gr).

BioCoffee Espresso Machine

  • Developed with bio-composite technology
  • Each Espresso Machine is made of five cups of coffee residue, reducing carbon footprint by 5% in bio-composite parts

Product that reduces chemicals:

AutoDose Dishwasher

  • AutoDose dispenses the right amount of detergent for sparkling clean dishes every time
  • In each wash, up to 28%**** less detergent used with Autodose for a healthy living on a healthy planet

*Current products available from the Çayırova Washing Machine Plant are 8-9-10 kg 1400-1600 rpm WM and 8/5kg & 10/6 kg WD. The target is to expand PET usage to other plants.

**The number of egg trays can change according to the model

*** For lightly soiled dishes & gel detergent usage

GE Appliances celebrates business transformation

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CEO Kevin Nolan and Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer recognized GE Appliances’ remarkable business transformation over the last five years by renaming the loop at Appliance Park to GEA Way. The “GEA Way” reflects our better way of doing business and the winning approach underway since 2016 that’s resulted in:
 
✅ Double-digit growth
✅ $1 billion in U.S. investments
✅ 2,000 American jobs created
✅ Meaningful investments in local communities
✅ New, innovative microenterprises and more. 

Along with the ceremonial street naming, Mayor Fischer declared today “GEA Way Day.”
 https://geappliancesco.com/the-gea-way-ge-appliances-celebrates-business-transformation/

How Location-Based Technology Empowers Electrolux Smart Home Appliances

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Electrolux is a leading global appliances company, producing a wide range of consumer electrical goods, including washing machines, cookers, vacuum cleaners, refrigerators, etc. Since 2017, Electrolux has been investing in ‘connected appliances’ as part of its digital transformation agenda, and to shift its business model from the traditional business-to-business (B2B) to business-to-consumer (B2C).

In 2020, Electrolux and IBM’s The Weather Company announced a new collaboration to use location-based Artificial Intelligence (AI) to enhance customer experience and help increase the energy efficiency of home appliances in order to reduce their impact on the environment.

AI-enabled weather forecasting

IBM’s weather API (Application Programming Interface) provides hyper-localized data on air quality, pollen levels, humidity and temperature to Electrolux. This data is then used as a basis for smart app recommendations about when to use appliances such as clothes dryers, air purifiers and air conditioners. For example, after reading the weather forecast, the smart app will give recommendations on the best time to start the dryer because it’s about to rain, or when to turn off the air purifier because the air quality that day is good.

With supervision from an experienced team of meteorologists, IBM uses AI and analytics to pull weather models together with relevant data sources and arrive at the most accurate forecast. The process includes a next-generation AI-enabled weather forecasting model called IBM GRAF (Global High-Resolution Atmospheric Forecasting) system. IBM GRAF uses Machine Learning to rapidly update atmospheric changes hourly and at a 3km resolution.

Connected home ecosystem

The real-time, location-based weather predictions are made available through the Electrolux Life App. Users are prompted to use their clothes dryer when rain is forecasted or when the air quality is not acceptable for air-drying. Similarly, the application recommends not to use the dryer when the outdoor weather is optimal for air-drying, thus saving energy.

The app can also control inputs for other appliances, such as the humidity control for air conditioners and accurate readings of indoor and outdoor weather to inform the use of air purifiers. An entire ecosystem of multiple connected appliances benefits from access to accurate weather forecasts, as well as environmental factors such as air quality, pollen, pollution and more.



Electrolux Life App with IBM weather notifications | Image credit: IBM

Location tech enabling hardware-as-a-service business model

In 2019, Electrolux kicked off trials of new hardware-as-a-service business models in Sweden and China, enabling consumers to subscribe to, rather than purchase, its products.

For instance, in Sweden, customers can subscribe to a robotic vacuum cleaner on a pay-per-use basis from only 1 SEK per sq m cleaned. The vacuum cleaner is equipped with a variety of sensors and software, including a location-based 3D Vision camera and laser for accurate navigation and area cleaned calculation. With Electrolux connected ecosystem technology, users can control the product via an app and schedule cleaning when they are away from home as well as monitor the number of sq m cleaned each month.

Demand planning and prediction

Electrolux also uses AI to plan and predict demand. By enhancing its historical sales data with data from external sources, the company ensures that retailers have the right goods when customers are demanding them.

For example, weather data is used to predict sales of air conditioners during summer time in Sweden. Using advanced statistical models, the data science team at Electrolux predicts the exact amount of the right products to be supplied to retailers at specific times of the year.

In addition to weather data, the company also monitors the Internet for online reviews, ratings and prices of products in both retail stores and online stores, including price promotions by competitors. It uses this data to avoid oversupply, hence retailers do not need to offer excessive discounts due to overstocking.

Since Electrolux products are supplied to different parts of the world, location technology is crucial to tune its manufacturing, distribution and customer supply chain. Based on the demand prediction, products are distributed from warehouses near the factories or plants, to redistribution centres. The demand planning practice helps optimize suppliers, logistics chains and transport, giving Electrolux a competitive advantage in the white goods market.

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Nidec Global Appliance, a division of Japanese manufacturer Nidec, announced that it will invest US$70 million in new production lines for its Embraco brand compressors and condensing units, including propane (R290) and isobutane (R600a) models.

Currently, Embraco produces 45 million compressors and condensing units per year. The new production lines – at plants in Brazil, Mexico, China and Austria – will increase annual production capacity by more than 10 million units.

Nidec has three business units: one that provides solutions for commercial refrigeration equipment; another that makes compressors and motors for residential appliances; and a third that produces components for HVAC systems.

A number of factors, including effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, motivated the investment decision. “As people all around the world are spending more time at home, it has become increasingly important to re-evaluate the level of quality and energy efficiency of residential appliances,” explained Valter Taranzano, CEO of Nidec Global Appliance.

“In parallel, more people at home means more consumption of fresh food, increasing the demand for refrigeration in the food retail sector, such as supermarkets and convenience stores,” he said, adding that cooling is also a key factor in the health and scientific industries, two sectors that experienced an increase in demand for refrigeration due to COVID-19.

Taranzano noted that the investment package also puts Nidec “ahead of the game to support the transition to natural refrigerants and to variable speed (more energy efficient) compressors, which are two movements that are ongoing in different stages in many parts of the world.” Additional production capacity is also required “to support our future growth plans,” he said.

Investments in Brazil and Mexico

Out of the US$70 million, an investment of US$21 million in a plant in Joinville, Brazil, will add a third production line of EM compressors and deliver additional 2.5 million units per year in response to high demand in Brazil and Latin America. This is on top of a US$4 million investment already made to increase productivity, Nidec said.

The EM compressor – one of Embraco’s “best sellers, the company said – is a fixed-speed unit running on R600a and R290, and suited for a variety of applications, such as home refrigerators, supermarket’s refrigeration equipment, professional kitchens and merchandisers. The new production line will deliver the latest EM models, EM2 and EM3.

At a plant in Itaiópolis, Brazil, Nidec is investing around US$2 million to increase production capacity for condensing units by 25%.

In Apodaca, Mexico, the production facility is receiving US$35 million to build a new production line for ES compressors, increasing production capacity by 60%. The plant will supply North America, supporting the transition to hydrocarbon units with greater cooling capacity in the region.

Investments in Austria and China

In Austria and China, Nidec Global Appliance is investing in greater production of variable speed compressors, which “are a more environmentally responsible option that provides significant energy savings compared to traditional on-off compressors,” the company said, adding that the units have “the option of running on natural refrigerants.

In a plant in Fürstenfeld, Austria, Nidec is investing US$5 million to start production of two variable speed models, FMX and VES, for the European market.

Nidec Global Appliance, a division of Japanese manufacturer Nidec,  announced that it will invest US$70 million in new production lines for its Embraco brand compressors and condensing units, including propane (R290) and isobutane (R600a) models.

Currently, Embraco produces 45 million compressors and condensing units per year. The new production lines – at plants in Brazil, Mexico, China and Austria –  will increase annual production capacity by more than 10 million units.

Nidec has three business units: one that provides solutions for commercial refrigeration equipment; another that makes compressors and motors for residential appliances; and a third that produces components for HVAC systems.

A number of factors, including effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, motivated the investment decision. “As people all around the world are spending more time at home, it has become increasingly important to re-evaluate the level of quality and energy efficiency of residential appliances,” explained Valter Taranzano, CEO of Nidec Global Appliance.

“In parallel, more people at home means more consumption of fresh food, increasing the demand for refrigeration in the food retail sector, such as supermarkets and convenience stores,” he said, adding that cooling is also a key factor in the health and scientific industries, two sectors that experienced an increase in demand for refrigeration due to COVID-19.

Taranzano noted that the investment package also puts Nidec “ahead of the game to support the transition to natural refrigerants and to variable speed (more energy efficient) compressors, which are two movements that are ongoing in different stages in many parts of the world.” Additional production capacity is also required “to support our future growth plans,” he said.

Investments in Brazil and Mexico

Out of the US$70 million, an investment of US$21 million in a plant in Joinville, Brazil, will add a third production line of EM compressors and deliver additional 2.5 million units per year in response to high demand in Brazil and Latin America. This is on top of a US$4 million investment already made to increase productivity, Nidec said. 

The EM compressor – one of Embraco’s “best sellers, the company said – is a fixed-speed unit running on R600a and R290, and suited for a variety of applications, such as home refrigerators, supermarket’s refrigeration equipment, professional kitchens and merchandisers. The new production line will deliver the latest EM models, EM2 and EM3.

At a plant in Itaiópolis, Brazil, Nidec is investing around US$2 million to increase production capacity for condensing units by 25%.

In Apodaca, Mexico, the production facility is receiving US$35 million to build a new production line for ES compressors, increasing production capacity by 60%. The plant will supply North America, supporting the transition to hydrocarbon units with greater cooling capacity in the region.

Investments in Austria and China

In Austria and China, Nidec Global Appliance is investing in greater production of variable speed compressors, which “are a more environmentally responsible option that provides significant energy savings compared to traditional on-off compressors,” the company said, adding that the units have “the option of running on natural refrigerants.

In a plant in Fürstenfeld, Austria, Nidec is investing US$5 million to start production of two variable speed models, FMX and VES, for the European market.  

Nidec Global Appliance, a division of Japanese manufacturer Nidec,  announced that it will invest US$70 million in new production lines for its Embraco brand compressors and condensing units, including propane (R290) and isobutane (R600a) models.

Currently, Embraco produces 45 million compressors and condensing units per year. The new production lines – at plants in Brazil, Mexico, China and Austria –  will increase annual production capacity by more than 10 million units.

Nidec has three business units: one that provides solutions for commercial refrigeration equipment; another that makes compressors and motors for residential appliances; and a third that produces components for HVAC systems.

A number of factors, including effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, motivated the investment decision. “As people all around the world are spending more time at home, it has become increasingly important to re-evaluate the level of quality and energy efficiency of residential appliances,” explained Valter Taranzano, CEO of Nidec Global Appliance.

“In parallel, more people at home means more consumption of fresh food, increasing the demand for refrigeration in the food retail sector, such as supermarkets and convenience stores,” he said, adding that cooling is also a key factor in the health and scientific industries, two sectors that experienced an increase in demand for refrigeration due to COVID-19.

Taranzano noted that the investment package also puts Nidec “ahead of the game to support the transition to natural refrigerants and to variable speed (more energy efficient) compressors, which are two movements that are ongoing in different stages in many parts of the world.” Additional production capacity is also required “to support our future growth plans,” he said.

Investments in Brazil and Mexico

Out of the US$70 million, an investment of US$21 million in a plant in Joinville, Brazil, will add a third production line of EM compressors and deliver additional 2.5 million units per year in response to high demand in Brazil and Latin America. This is on top of a US$4 million investment already made to increase productivity, Nidec said. 

The EM compressor – one of Embraco’s “best sellers, the company said – is a fixed-speed unit running on R600a and R290, and suited for a variety of applications, such as home refrigerators, supermarket’s refrigeration equipment, professional kitchens and merchandisers. The new production line will deliver the latest EM models, EM2 and EM3.

At a plant in Itaiópolis, Brazil, Nidec is investing around US$2 million to increase production capacity for condensing units by 25%.

In Apodaca, Mexico, the production facility is receiving US$35 million to build a new production line for ES compressors, increasing production capacity by 60%. The plant will supply North America, supporting the transition to hydrocarbon units with greater cooling capacity in the region.

Investments in Austria and China

In Austria and China, Nidec Global Appliance is investing in greater production of variable speed compressors, which “are a more environmentally responsible option that provides significant energy savings compared to traditional on-off compressors,” the company said, adding that the units have “the option of running on natural refrigerants.

In a plant in Fürstenfeld, Austria, Nidec is investing US$5 million to start production of two variable speed models, FMX and VES, for the European market.  

Whirlpool Corporation will invest $15 million in factory

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Whirlpool Corporation will invest $15 million into its factory in Tulsa, OK as part of the company’s ongoing efforts to further strengthen its U.S. manufacturing capabilities and bring more innovation, top ranking consumer products and high-quality jobs to the region. In conjunction with its investment, Whirlpool will receive an additional $1 million from the state of Oklahoma through its Business Expansion Investment Program (BEIP). The plant produces freestanding and slide-in ranges under the Whirlpool, Amana, Maytag, KitchenAid and JennAir brands.

Whirlpool expects to create approximately 150 new jobs, building on the company’s Tulsa expansion project announced in 2018. With the additional investment, the company has committed to increase its factory headcount to a total of over 2,000 employees in Tulsa. In March 2020, Whirlpool opened an 800,000-square-foot Factory Distribution Center which doubled the size of its footprint in Tulsa.

Smart-Appliance Maker Viomi Reports Surging First-Quarter Profit and Revenue Growth

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Viomi Technology, a Xiaomi-backed Chinese startup focusing on developing Internet of Things (IoT)-powered home appliances, posted a 173.2% increase in first-quarter net profit as the firm expanded overseas.

Net profit for the quarter that ended on March 31 surged to 49.1 million yuan ($7.5 million), Viomi said in its earnings report released Thursday.

Revenue rose 64% year-on-year to 1.3 billion yuan, about 73% of which came from sales of its IoT-enabled appliances such as sweeper robots and smart kitchen products, according to the financial report. Sales of IoT-enabled appliances jumped 111.5% year-on-year.

The remainder of Viomi’s revenue was generated from sales of its domestic water solutions, consumables and small appliances, the report said.

Viomi said that the robust growth got a boost in part by its drive to expand into overseas markets including Europe, Southeast Asia, South Korea and Australia, where its sweeper robots are popular.

“Our products are designed with an eye on health care, smartification, home security and natural AI voice interactions,” said Viomi CEO Chen Xiaoping. “Looking ahead at the rest of 2021, we will continue to optimize our IoT product portfolio with a focus on AI application.”

As of the end of March, Viomi accumulated 5.6 million household users, about 20.4% of which had at least two Viomi-branded internet connected products, according to the report.

The Nasdaq-listed company said that it expects its second-quarter revenue to be between 1.7 billion yuan and 1.9 billion yuan, representing a year-on-year increase of 2.1% to 9.8%.

Galanz to buy whirlpool China

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Home appliance manufacturer Galanz Group’s acquisition of the Chinese unit of United States’ white goods maker Whirlpool will help it to diversify its business, a top company official said.

“Growth, no matter what happens, along with high-quality development, will be our core strategy this year,” said Liang Zhaoxian, chairman of Galanz, during the company’s annual meeting on Sunday.

After over 200 days of antimonopoly investigation by authorities in the United States, China, Brazil, Germany, Turkey, Austria and Colombia, Galanz was given the go-ahead for the acquisition deal, according to Liang.

“The approval means all shareholders of Whirlpool China can sell their shares to Galanz. It would be a historical milestone for us,” said Liang.

Last August, the Chinese firm said that it would accept no less than 51 percent of Whirlpool China’s equity and a maximum of 61 percent, according to Liang.

“Galanz will focus on upgrading technology, brand and supply chains for business growth this year. The acquisition of Whirlpool China is part of our strategy to help diversify brands and promote sustainable business growth,” said Liang.

The acquisition, which is equal to 2.46 billion yuan ($370 million), will start on Wednesday and end on April 29. Whirlpool China’s stock price was down 6.48 percent at 7.65 yuan per share on Tuesday.

“It was not simply a cooperation between a Chinese company and a Fortune Global 500 company－Chinese home appliance makers will be more competitive in the global market as they have now developed core technologies in the self-innovative industrial chain,” said Liang.

According to Liang, Galanz plans to build two purchasing technology quality control centers in South China and East China in the near future.

“We will build a new market, bring in advanced technology, products and services to consumers in China, as well as the world,” said Liang.

Galanz, which is Whirlpool’s third-largest global supplier, intends to help Whirlpool China to improve management efficiency, enhance profitability and ensure stable development, said Liang Huiqiang, vice-chairman of Galanz.

After acquiring a combined majority stake in Japanese kitchen appliance maker Zojirushi in January last year, Galanz has been vying for more brands to diversify its business.

Teaming up with Whirlpool and Zojirushi will help Galanz to enter a rapid business expansion in the near future, according to Liang.

“Having multiple brands and diversified businesses is the future development trend for various consumer groups,” said Liang.

The Guangdong-based company has been looking for more than 10,000 workers to boost its production capacity this year, due to increased orders from overseas buyers.

After posting a 212 percent year-on-year growth in sales last year, the company is expecting overseas orders to rise by 90 percent on a yearly basis during the first quarter of this year, according to Liang.

“The production capacity of refrigerators will increase by more than 80 percent this year,” said Liang.

Vestel signs licensing agreement with South Korea’s Daewoo Brand!

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Vestel signs licensing agreement with South Korea’s Daewoo Brand!

Bringing to 157 countries worldwide the leading-edge technologies it manufactures in Turkey, and having been Turkey’s exports champion in consumer electronics for 23 years, Vestel has initiated yet another strategic collaboration in exports by signing a 10-year licensing agreement with with POSCO INTERNATIONAL Corporation, holders of the Daewoo brand, to allow Vestel manufacture and sell major appliances and TV sets with the Daewoo brand.

Vestel is set to export these products to nearly 50 countries particularly in Europe as well as Russia and the Turkic Republics, further cementing its strong position in both European and Asian markets.

Arçelik have signed an agreement to acquire Whirlpool Turkey’s manufacturing operations.

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Arçelik have signed an agreement to acquire Whirlpool Turkey’s manufacturing operations.

Manisa is a key production hub which will bring in a significant additional capacity for Arçelik Global and further strengthen their foothold in Europe and in the region.

Arçelik are establishing a strategic commercial relationship with Whirlpool which will open up export opportunities in new markets.