Actuant to debut China design & development center
Industrial Distribution staff -- Industrial Distribution, 3/3/2008 6:51:00 AM
Actuant Corp. plans to open a $15 million design and development center near Shanghai, China, this summer, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.It will be the largest of the Milwaukee-based hydraulics, tools and motion control systems manufacturer’s facilities, employing 75 researchers and engineers.
"The Chinese are as good [at design and engineering] as anyone in the world," CEO Bob Arzbaecher told the newspaper.
Actuant already has a large presence in China; it acquired an engineering firm there in 2003 which was tapped to put the finishing touches on the 80,000-seat main stadium for the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Nicknamed “the bird’s nest” for its interwoven, 226-feet-high structure made of 22 miles of steel beams, the stadium posed a singular engineering challenge for workers from Actuant China Ltd. Using synchronized hydraulic jacks and satellite controls, they lifted the 45,000-ton nest from 78 stanchions and lowered the structure onto its foundations.
Actuant posted sales of $35 million in mainland China last year, a number Arzbaecher expects to increase to $80 million by 2010. The company more than doubled its R&D budget in the last four years to 2.5 percent of total sales.
"The strategic need for 24/7 engineering talent to support any of our initiatives, whether it's for an air pump or retractable roofs, is critical to our success," Arzbaecher told the newspaper.
Talkback
Related Content
Sponsored Links
View All Blogs
