GE spokesman is quoted as saying “GE is evaluating a wide range of strategic options for our appliances business, including discussions with Electrolux and other interested parties”, although it wouldn’t name them.

Analysts are suggesting that there would be a mutual benefit in such an acquisition. Electrolux, which recently opened a cooking appliance factory in Memphis, is looking to increase its falling market share in North America, while GE is widely reported as looking to shed its appliances interests in order to allocate resources to higher-growth businesses.

With the economic problems that have beset the European market, Electrolux president and chief executive Keith McLoughlin has been quoted before as saying that he is keen to pursue growth in Asia and North America.

Electrolux has grown by acquisition in the past. It bought Zanussi in 1984, Frigidaire in 1986 and AEG’s household division in 1994.

In 2013, revenue remained flat for the GE lighting and appliances business at around $8.3 billion (£5bn) – that was just 2.3 per cent of overall profits.

If acquired by Electrolux, GE Appliances would gain a greater global footprint and expand its business outside of America, which is its main focus.

Another company reported to be interested in GE Appliances is five-year-old start-up Quirky, which recently teamed up with GE to produce a line of air conditioners that can be controlled from a smartphone.

As well as Quirky, pundits have thrown the names of Samsung and Arçelik into the hat as companies likely to be interested in striking a deal for GE Appliances.

GE did put the appliances business up for sale in 2008, but there were no takers. It is now reported as saying that it is in “no rush” this time to complete a deal and there is no “dire need for cash”.

e Commercial Court No. 1 in Spain, has awarded CNA Group with the assets of appliance maker Fagor Electrodomésticos who plans to take the Fagor business forward.

CNA paid €38.5 million to acquire all Fagor manufacturing lines in the Basque region of Spain. CNA Group said its plan assures the continuity of the well-known appliance brand Fagor, as well as brands Edesa, Aspes, and Splendid.

The CNA Group are best known in the UK for their Cata line of products sold through B&Q, largely in the budget end of the market.

Fagor Electrodomésticos, part of Spain’s industrial cooperative Mondragon Corporation, filed for bankruptcy late last year with its French subsidiary, FagorBrandt recently sold to Algerian conglomerate Cevital in June 2014.

CNA said it will also provide continuity of technical support and warranty coverage on all the brands’ appliances lines, including cold, laundry, and cooking appliances, small electric housewares, and comfort conditioning appliances.

We have no indication at this time if warranties for products sold in the UK will be honoured since, as we understand it, this was under the control of the FagorBrandt subsidiary and not from Fagor in Spain directly.

At a press conference held at Fagor operations in Arrasate-Mondragon, CNA Corporate Manager Jorge Parladé and Cata Corporation CEO Francisco Martin said their objective is to restart Fagor corporate activities as quickly as possible—in September, with a restart of manufacturing in October.

Parladé and Martin told media members that CNA hopes to bring back 840 jobs over the next four years as it restarts Fagor operations. In the first year the company hopes to hire 434 employees in the Garagarza plant, where it will restart production of laundry appliances, cold appliances, cooking appliances, and dishwashers. Ensuing efforts will focus on restaffing and restarting production in Bergara, Eskoriatza, and Basauri.

Martin, according to Basque media outlet El Pais, told media members that the heaters and boilers plant in Basauri would be the last plant to be restarted—and that another company could conceivably take over that operation. El Pais reporter Agnes P. Chávarri wrote that CNA has been in negotiations to sell full ownership of the plant in Bergara to German-based heating equipment maker Vaillant.

New Whirlpool Induction Hobs Offer Fast Flexiblcoooking

By JM.MarketingPublished: August 7, 2014

If you like your cooking to be nice and easy, the new Whirlpool induction hobs are the perfect choice. They are easy to operate, easy on your energy output and have all the speed and cooking flexibility you need.

These stylish and sophisticated new hobs epitomise the wonders of induction cooking, combining power, precision and exceptional efficiency. The 60cm ACM 828 BA and the 77cm ACM 812 BA both benefit from four induction zones and booster functionality, while the ACM 828 BA has new, double, Flexizone technology.

The beauty of an induction hob is that it will heat the pan, not the hob and offers energy savings of up to 40 per cent compared to a traditional hob, as well as being much faster. With an induction hob you can boil two litres of water in just five minutes.

Whirlpool’s new hobs are also outstandingly versatile and flexible. The ACM 828 BA has double Flexizone technology to give you the freedom to organise your cooking area to suit your requirements.  It is designed to accommodate your largest pans (up to 38cm in length) by linking each front and back zone together to maintain a consistent temperature across the whole zone. This makes it ideal for cooking large amounts of food, or to use lots of pans all at once. If you switch to a smaller pan, the system detects, after just one minute, which part of the zone you are using and automatically activates it.

Jennifer Spragg, Brand and Digital Manager for Whirlpool, says: “Our new induction hobs combine the wonders of induction cooking with the intelligence of Flexizone technology for a cooking experience that is fast, super-efficient and offers maximum controllability. The savings on time and energy from our latest induction hobs are substantial and they look super cool too.”

Key features and benefits of the Whirlpool ACM 828 BA induction hob:

Built-in 60cm, four zone induction hob

Induction technology heats the pan, not the hob, so it is very energy efficient

Double Flexizone gives you the freedom to organise your cooking area to suit your requirements. It links each front and back zone to accommodate your largest pans (up to 38cm in length) and maintains a consistent temperature across the whole zone. This makes it ideal for cooking using larger utensils or many different sized ones

If you switch to a smaller pan, the system detects after just one minute which part of the zone you are using and automatically activates it

Booster setting for each zone – for bringing pans to the boil fast

Timer can be set for all cooking zones; select cooking zone and set to a cooking time and will switch off automatically

Residual heat indicator for each zone

Control panel lock to prevent inadvertent use of the hob

Dimensions H x W x D: 56 x 580 x 510 mm

For stockist and more information on the Whirlpool range of induction hobs go to the website at http://www.whirlpool.co.uk

About Whirlpool Europe, Middle East & Africa (EMEA):
With around 10,000 employees, a sales presence in over 30 countries in Europe, Middle East and Africa and manufacturing sites in six countries, Whirlpool EMEA is a wholly owned subsidiary of Whirlpool Corporation. The world’s leading manufacturer and marketer of major home appliances, Whirlpool Corporation had annual sales of $19 billion in 2013, 69,000 employees, and 59 manufacturing and technology research centres around the world. The company markets Whirlpool, Maytag, KitchenAid, Jenn-Air, Amana, Brastemp, Bauknecht and other major brand names to consumers in nearly every country around the world. Whirlpool’s European Operations Centre is located in Comerio (VA), Italy. For further information on the company, please visit the Web Site http://www.whirlpoolcorp.com

For further press information and images please con

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Wanting warm plates for a dinner party? Simply sprink.e water on each, pile up and heat for 30 secs #SharpTips http://t.co/vGFCxLOZ2

Korean appliance brand LG has announced a partnership with healthy eating hub Honestly Healthy, to support the company’s new refrigeration range.

The deal will involve a six month programme of consumer marketing activity to promote the appliances, which, claims LG, have unique technology and features for keeping food and groceries fresh for longer.

LG’s partnership with Honestly Healthy will highlight the innovative technologies used in the brand’s latest range of combi, side-by-side and American-style refrigeration.

The new line-up features technologies specifically designed to maintain freshness in fruit and vegetables, such as the Moist Balance Crisper, which forms a lattice above the salad and vegetable drawers in order to capture the moisture given off by foods and preventing them becoming either dried-out or soggy.

The internet-connected @SamsungUK washing machine that stores a month’s worth of detergent: http://t.co/3cxm7BUzvg http://t.co/2rTS1gOAXe

Take a look at our new colour edition fridge-freezer. It’s very, very clever. http://t.co/kEeovmsKVc http://t.co/TSa7PTiAUi

Tip of the day:”Changing a Cooker Hood Filter”

http://t.co/3TSrH31Llr 

IFA, confirmed overnight that Samsung, Arçelik, Intel, Nest and Sennheiser have been booked to deliver keynote addresses during the conference.