- GE announces further investment in machines and reconstruction of the factory in Karlovac, totaling nearly HRK 160 million
- GE’s Karlovac factory is the center of excellence for service turbine blade production and structural parts reconditioning
- Alongside the Minister of Environmental Protection and Energy Slaven Dobrović, the factory was visited by the Chairperson of the European Affairs Committee Domagoj Ivan Milošević
KARLOVAC - March 13, 2017 - The GE factory in Karlovac was visited by the Minister of Environmental Protection and Energy Slaven Dobrović and associates, as well as the Chairperson of the European Affairs Committee Domagoj Ivan Milošević. On the occasion, the CEO of General Electric (GE) for Southeastern Europe, Gaetano Massara, and General Manager of GE in Croatia, Damir Vranić, presented the factory in Karlovac that has been recognized as the center of excellence for the production of service turbine blades and the reconditioning of structural parts. In addition to the introductory presentation of GE factory operations as well as completed and future projects in both Croatia and the region, the company announced additional investment throughout the year in machines and reconstruction of the factory’s building, amounting to nearly HRK 160 million.
“GE Karlovac factory provides services for new and exisiting power plants operting in both the renewable and thermal sectors and obtained its most significant references in supplying various gas and steam turbine components. Over the past few years, the factory in Karlovac has been recognized for the speed, quality and flexibility of its production, and the announced investment will significantly increase in its capacities and confirm GE’s commitment to this particular region” said Gaetano Massara, GE CEO for Southeastern Europe. “GE has recognized this part of Europe as an excellent investment location for manufacturing and development of new technologies and innovative solutions, and we have become the largest US investor in the region”.
In Central Eastern Europe, GE is working on the Plomin 2 thermal power plant project in Croatia, and at Elektro Privreda Srbije’s (EPS) TPP Nikola Tesla , the largest coal-fired power plant in Serbia. GE recently announced its new global Powering Efficiency Center of Excellence (COE), with an aim to boost the efficiency of the world’s new and existing coal-fired power plants and significantly reduce their emissions of greenhouse gasses. In addition, GE successfully completed a number of projects, including Plomin 1 thermal power plant, Slovenia’s Ljubljana and Šoštanj thermal power plants, and Macedonia’s Oslomej thermal power plant.
In Croatia, GE does business using the synergy of its three business units - Engineering, Service Center Karlovac and Service Croatia, which Minister Dobrović and Committee Chairperson Milošević tour following the introductory presentation.
”This is a model of how to make and create now innovative solutions and take steps forward in technology which is what is key to future development of the energy sector and crossing over to low-emission development of Croatia,” said Slaven Dobrović, Minister of Environmental Protection and Energy. “Our goal is to ensure lowering greenhouse gas emissions while ensuring a reliable electricity supply and competitive prices. This is also a great development opportunity for our economy, which is capable of producing technology. This is also an opportunity for your own further growth I'm certain you will make the most of.“
“The GE factory in Karlovac position our country as one for production, development and export of innovative products and services, and at the same time confirms that we have professional and highly specialized people who can successfully respond to the challenges of the global market, new knowledges and technological development,” remarked Domagoj Ivan Milošević, Chairperson of the European Affairs Committee. “The factory is an excellent example of fulfilling Croatia’s potential for attracting significant foreign investments, which put Croatia on the map of the European and global electric energy producer through the Karlovac-based GE facility. We are especially proud of that considering the century-long tradition of exploiting the Croatian potentials in the energy sector.”
The investment in the Karlovac Service Center‘s blade production workshop will foresee 19 high-tech 5-axis milling machines and CMM measuring machine, including a line scanner for fast part scanning. Moreover, the new factory will boast advanced Digital Industrial technologies, showcasing GE’s Brilliant Factory products built on the Predix platform. Predix is a cloud-based PaaS (platform as a service) that enables industrial-scale analytics for asset performance management (APM) and operations optimization by providing a standard way to connect machines, data, and people.
“Brilliant Factory enables automation of manufacturing processes that are vital to the future of blade production in Croatia. Currently we have more than 700 employees in Karlovac, and over the past ten years we have invested a total of HRK 250 million in the Karlovac facility,” said Damir Vranić, general manager at GE in Croatia. “Working with more than 300 suppliers from Croatia, our total purchasing volume is HRK 88.2 million and 14 percent of our suppliers cover as much as 80 percent of the volume. In 2016, we generated exports worth HRK 333 million, which is 84 percent of total income. These figures are a good indicator that GE’s strategic investments in the region, especially in production, is a logical direction for the development of the Karlovac factory, which has really ambitious plans for the future.”
About GE’s Karlovac facility
The Karlovac facility greatly contributes to the operations of GE, which, with its over 30 facilities in the region and 20,500 industrial employees in Central and Eastern Europe, has an excellent export base. Additionally, GE has built up a solid production base that is a part of the company’s global supply chain and represents its capacity to develop technology for worldwide exports. Annually from the region GE globally exports solutions worth HRK 54.6 billion and works with 6,500 suppliers on a volume of HRK 15.4 billion.
About GE
GE (NYSE: GE) is the world’s Digital Industrial Company, transforming industry with software-defined machines and solutions that are connected, responsive and predictive. GE is organized around a global exchange of knowledge, the "GE Store," through which each business shares and accesses the same technology, markets, structure and intellect. Each invention further fuels innovation and application across our industrial sectors. With people, services, technology and scale, GE delivers better outcomes for customers by speaking the language of industry (www.ge.com).
About GE Power
GE Power is a world leader in power generation with deep domain expertise to help customers deliver electricity from a wide spectrum of fuel sources. We are transforming the electricity industry with the digital power plant, the world’s largest and most efficient gas turbine, full balance of plant, upgrade and service solutions as well as our data-leveraging software. Our innovative technologies and digital offerings help make power more affordable, reliable, accessible and sustainable. For more information, visit the company's website at www.gepower.com.
###
* Trademark of General Electric Company; may be registered in one or more countries.
For more information, contact:
Laco & Partners
Anita Klapan
+385 99 2183 861
GE
Waldemar Oldenburger
+420 606 079 139