The amount of recycled plastic Electrolux used increased from 6,400 metric tons in 2019 to 6,800 metric tons in 2020.
Find out more in the Electrolux Sustainability Report 2020:
Category Archives: Manufacturing
Haier New Washing Machine production India
The first washing machine rolled off the production line from Haier Industrial Park Washing Machine Factory in Great Noida, Uttar Pradesh,India
Middleby Acquires Premium Residential Appliance Brand Novy
The Middleby Corporation (NASDAQ: MIDD) today announced the acquisition of Novy, a leading manufacturer of premium residential ventilation hoods and cooktops based in Belgium, with sales of approximately $90 million USD annually and EBITDA margins in excess of 20%.
Arçelik and Hitachi Launch a New Joint Venture, Arçelik Hitachi Home Appliances
Arçelik Hitachi Home Appliances, the new joint venture will play a major role in the Asia-Pacific region and will expand global sales of Hitachi branded products (excluding Japan)
Hitachi Global Life Solutions, Inc. (“Hitachi GLS”) announced the launch of a new joint venture company, Arçelik Hitachi Home Appliances B.V. The new joint venture, established by transferring 11 subsidiaries outside Japan (two manufacturing and nine sales companies) of Hitachi GLS, is operationally based in Bangkok, Thailand. Arçelik Hitachi Home Appliances provides manufacturing, sales, and after-sales service for Hitachi branded home appliances (refrigerators, washing machines and vacuum cleaners, etc.) outside Japan.
Arçelik has consistently expanded its home appliance business to 150 countries around the world. The company has grown significantly in Europe and achieved strong growth in South Asia over the last decade. Hitachi GLS has been operating its home appliance business mainly in Southeast Asia and the Middle East, where it enjoys a high-end brand image.
Arçelik Hitachi Home Appliances, the result of the collaboration between the two companies, will leverage their strengths such as supply chain and technological capabilities to build a competitive and innovative offer to market. The newly assigned CEO will be Zafer Üstüner, was the former Regional Head of APAC and General Manager of Thailand at Beko. Under his leadership, the new joint venture will combine the sales networks of both companies to expand the sales regions of Hitachi brand products to Europe, North Africa and other regions, as well as to integrate business bases such as production systems and procurement to strengthen our competitiveness. In the field of R&D, Arçelik and Hitachi GLS will also integrate the knowledge of both parties to create new value such as connected home appliances.
Sustainability is at the core of both Arçelik’s and Hitachi GLS’s strategies. Through their combined leadership in energy efficiency and sustainable solutions related to the home, the partnership will increase competitiveness around these key issues in the broader market.
“We are thrilled to announce the launch of Arçelik Hitachi Home Appliances today. For the past couple of months, we have been working tirelessly and diligently with the Hitachi GLS team to establish this joint venture, which is a significant milestone in our Silk Road strategy. Arçelik Hitachi Home Appliances provides both companies with an excellent opportunity to leverage successes in the Asia-Pacific home appliances market that holds a growing middle-class population, emerging retail channels, increasing household income and developing lifestyles. The company will leverage both companies’ robust market position, global expertise, and Hitachi’s brand heritage to deliver global and local market needs.”
Hakan Bulgurlu, CEO, Arçelik:
“We are delighted to launch our new joint venture with Hitachi GLS, Arçelik Hitachi Home Appliances. This is a major step for us in achieving our global expansion ambitions and goals to become one of the world’s top home appliances companies. The venture will have the chance to utilize complementary product portfolio and operational footprints of Arçelik. In the next few years, we will see Hitachi brand products covering full major domestic appliance need of customers and growing both in existing markets and new ones (geographies) by the support of Arçelik companies.”
Keiji Kojima, President and COO, Hitachi, Ltd. (Hitachi GLS’s parent company):
“We are delighted to establish today this new joint venture company with Arçelik – a company who is recognized for its high-quality products and excellent management efficiency. The Hitachi Group aims to contribute to people’s Quality of Life (QoL) through its Social Innovation Business, which solves social issues. Our aim is to realize a sustainable society by focusing on areas that promote the three values of ”Security and Safety,” ”Environment,” and ”Resilience”. The home appliances business is strategically important for the Hitachi Group, as it is the first point of contact for our brand with people – especially while demand for connected home appliances using digital technology is increasing. Through this collaboration with Arçelik, we will provide safe and secure living through Hitachi-brand home appliances to many more regions and contribute to improving people’s QoL globally.”
Jun Taniguchi, President, Hitachi Global Life Solutions, Inc.:
“Today, we are pleased to introduce Arçelik Hitachi Home Appliances – our new joint venture company with Arçelik. I am confident that by strengthening the complementary sales networks and product strategies of both companies, Arçelik Hitachi Home Appliances will gain a competitive edge and become a market leader in the global home appliances market. In addition, by combining the distinctive technologies of both companies, such as environmental resistance and digital technology, we will contribute to improving the QoL of consumers and develop products and services that will realize a sustainable society.”
Zafer Üstüner, CEO, Arçelik Hitachi Home Appliances:
“Today marks a new and exciting journey for Arçelik Hitachi Home Appliances, which is created to address the evolving needs for APAC market and tap into their economic growth. This company brings together global strategies from both businesses, obtains product synergies, and makes a targeted investment in brand and promotion to accelerate growth across all geographies and fulfil its growth potential. The company will also create strong efficiency gains through new procurement and manufacturing synergies gained from the partnership. Additionally, the new venture leverages Hitachi GLS’s strong presence in APAC and its high-end home appliances in the rapidly growing Asian market to make the new venture a success. Our teams have been working extremely hard on this strategic joint venture and are looking forward to seeing Arçelik Hitachi Home Appliances grow and develop in the coming years.”
About Arçelik Hitachi Home Appliances
Arçelik Hitachi Home Appliances was established on July 1st, 2021 as a joint venture between Arçelik A.Ş. and Hitachi Global Life Solutions, Inc to manufacture, sell and provide after-sales services of Hitachi branded home appliances including refrigerators, washing machines, vacuum cleaners globally (outside of the Japanese market). Arçelik acquired 60% ownership in the new company while Hitachi Global Life Solutions, Inc. continues as a 40% shareholder of the company. Through this joint venture, Arçelik AŞ and Hitachi GLS, Inc. have combined their expertise in other key areas such as R&D, procurement and production systems to optimize the joint venture’s global supply chain and strengthen its competitive positioning in the market.
https://www.arcelik-hitachi-homeappliances.com/
About Arçelik
Arçelik is a multinational household appliances manufacturer that operates with 12 brands (Arçelik, Beko, Grundig, Blomberg, ElektraBregenz, Arctic, Leisure, Flavel, Defy, Altus, Dawlance, Voltas Beko) and employs over 40,000 people worldwide. Arçelik’s global operations include sales and marketing offices in 46 countries, and 26 production facilities in 9 countries. As Europe’s second largest white goods company by market share (based on volumes), Arçelik reached a consolidated turnover of 5 billion Euros in 2020. Arçelik’s R&D and Design Centers across the globe, are home to over 1,600 researchers and hold more than 3,000 international patent applications to date. Arçelik is named the “Industry Leader” in the Durable Home Appliances category for the 2nd year in a row in Dow Jones Sustainability Index 2020 and, in accordance with PAS 2060 Carbon Neutrality Standard, became carbon-neutral in global production plants in 2019 and 2020 fiscal years with its carbon credits.
www.arcelikglobal.com
About Hitachi GLS
Headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, Hitachi Global Life Solutions, Inc., is a wholly owned subsidiary of Hitachi, Ltd. And Hitachi GLS is responsible for sale of (and provision of engineering and maintenance services for) home appliances, air conditioning equipment and other equipment and devices; and provision of products and solutions utilizing digital technologies. Based on the idea of “More smiles to life for one and all. A more comfortable tomorrow for people and society. With innovations that deliver happiness to the world, we open new doors to the future. “, we seek to gain a closer understanding of customer lifestyles. By resolving individual customer lifestyle issues, through well-designed and sophisticated products and services utilizing of the Hitachi Group’s value chain and digital technologies, we aspire to be a company that contributes to improving the quality of life for customers around the world.
www.hitachi-gls.com/
Galanz Largest Microwave manufacturer
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
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
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
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.
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
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.
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