ABB has opened a new innovation and training campus at the B&R headquarters in Eggelsberg, Austria, which houses an international center for machine and factory automation. The new campus will create up to 1,000 additional high-tech jobs and includes world-class research and development laboratories, as well as a global training facility for up to 4,000 people annually in collaboration with universities. ABB has invested EUR 100 million in the expansion of the B&R headquarters.
The campus’s innovations surrounding artificial intelligence and machine and factory automation will play a key role in unlocking the potential of future industrial production – in sectors such as electronics, e-mobility, food processing, recycling, logistics, and agriculture. They will increase efficiency and flexibility, helping customers become more sustainable and produce closer to their end markets.
– Innovation has been in ABB’s DNA for over 130 years, and our division, B&R, is a true innovation game-changer in the transformation toward more automated production – said ABB CEO Björn Rosengren. – The official opening of this campus is a proud moment for ABB, as we create highly skilled jobs while shaping the machines and factories of the future together with our customers.
The new campus increases the total area of the B&R headquarters to over 100,000 m², making B&R one of the largest integrated production, research, and training sites in Central Europe, currently employing approximately 2,400 people. The expansion will also free up space that will serve as additional production capacity to meet the growing demand for B&R products.
– This is a decade of transformation toward robotics and automation, as our customers respond to global labor and supply shortages, accelerating consumer demand for personalized products, and the need for more sustainable operations. The new ABB campus will serve as a hub for collaboration with customers around the world, where we work with them to help them address these trends and support B&R in becoming the partner of choice for the world’s most ambitious industrial automation projects – says Sami Atiya, President of ABB’s Robotics and Discrete Automation business.
The ABB innovation and training campus will act as an open innovation hub, where B&R will work closely with international customers, companies, and startups from across the region, as well as research and educational institutions, to co-develop automation solutions and train the talent needed for the factories of the future.
– Education will be a top priority on the campus. Our Automation Academy will offer inspiration and training opportunities for up to 4,000 students, apprentices, customer experts, and employees from around the world each year. B&R plans to offer dual university-level education in cooperation with higher education institutions – said Jörg Theis, CEO of B&R.