German Companies to Invest in USA
AdvanceCT reported that several German businesses, including TRUMPF, BioMed X, Roehm, BYK North America, and Eppendorf North America, have recently expanded their operations or begun expansion projects in Connecticut.
TRUMPF Inc., based in Farmington, will invest an additional $40M and expand their current facility by building a 55,800 square foot smart factory. Since the company’s initial establishment in Connecticut in 1969, TRUMPF has expanded seven times, the latest of which is this project.
“Smart factories are critical to the next generation of manufacturing. Not only do smart factories keep manufacturers efficient, productive and competitive in the market, these advanced facilities create technology-oriented jobs where people want to work today, and in the future,” said TRUMPF Inc. President & CEO Lutz Labisch.
“We hope the TRUMPF Inc. Smart Factory that will be housed in this expansion will serve as model for manufacturers in Connecticut and across the United States by highlighting what can be achieved in automated and connected precision sheet metal production. It will be a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility that our employees are proud to work in and present to the thousands of guests who visit our campus here in Farmington each year.”
The New Haven location of the Heidelberg-based biomedical research organization BioMed X will concentrate on research in immunology and tissue engineering. Their initial phase of operations will include 6 researchers and be close to Yale University, one of the industry’s most esteemed research partners in the life sciences.
Roehm, a German manufacturing company producing specialty chemicals, announced a 15,000 sq. ft. Innovation Center located nearby its existing production facility in Wallingford. Roehm’s newly built “Center of Excellence” is home to development of molding compound technology for the medical, automotive, lighting, and household goods industries. The company will employ an additional 8 people and focus on CYROLITE® and ACRYLITE® molding compound solutions.
Eppendorf North America, a subsidiary of the Hamburg-based Eppendorf Group and a manufacturer of laboratory supplies and equipment, expanded their already significant presence in Connecticut by opening a 238,000 square foot, state-of-the-art distribution facility in Enfield.
Officials from Eppendorf claim that the Enfield operation, which accounts for about 30% of their manufacturing efforts and 90% of their North American distribution, is one of their most important locations outside of their German locations.
The company’s rapid corporate growth over the past year has been accelerated by BYK North America, a subsidiary of BYK, a chemical and measuring instrument manufacturer with headquarters in Wesel, Germany, pledging to expand at their Wallingford headquarters.
“German companies have always had an affinity for Connecticut”, said Peter Denious, CEO of AdvanceCT. “Companies find the talent and expertise they need, particularly in advanced manufacturing and life sciences. Connecticut’s economy is in many ways a mirror image of the German economy: a deep focus on engineering, R&D and innovation. Our costs are significantly lower than our neighbors and we have the experienced highly trained and educated workforce that German companies need.”
“The TRUMPF, BioMed X, BYK North America, Eppendorf North America and Roehm expansions are in good company with many other German companies in Connecticut, such as Boehringer Ingelheim, and Henkel”, said John Bourdeaux, President of AdvanceCT.
“Connecticut has a strong research and development infrastructure underpinned by Yale and the University of Connecticut. Connecticut is an excellent place for German Mittelstand companies to locate and grow. We expect to see more German pharmaceutical and medical device companies enter the North American market through Connecticut.”
Connecticut, the third smallest state in the U.S. by area, is home to over 98 German companies.
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