Farasis choses the German Southwest for European battery development centre
In mid-2019, the American-Chinese battery specialist Farasis Energy located its European battery development centre in Frickenhausen in the Stuttgart region, thereby proving the current and future importance of Baden-Württemberg as one of the world’s leading automotive locations. With this new site, the third largest manufacturer of batteries for electric vehicles in China and the world’s second largest supplier of batteries in pouch cell format, wants to expand and gain a foothold in the European market. Farasis moved into an area of around 4,800 square metres in an industrial park. There, the battery modules and accumulator systems for European customers are tied up. In addition to the offices, there is also a production area for prototype construction and testing. According to Sebastian Wolf, head of Farasis' European business, the company appreciates the good infrastructure of the industrial park and the proximity to the major car manufacturers. In the course of 2020, the workforce at the new site is to grow up to 100 employees.
Gardena opts for "made in Germany" and extends its location in Heuchlingen
With an investment of around 15 million euros, the gardening company is expanding its capacity and strengthening its production site in Heuchlingen/Gerstetten – a commitment to the region East Württemberg and to the state of Baden-Württemberg, that can well compete with China and Eastern Europe here. The investment includes 5,000 square metres of additional production space, new machinery, automation and a new canteen. The construction is to be completed by September 2020. With 300 employees, Gardena is the largest employer in Heuchlingen. The expansion of the site is expected to create about 30 new jobs. Around 1.5 million plastic parts for irrigation products are produced daily at the site, the expansion will increase the capacity of the plant by ten per cent. Gardena is a leading supplier of high-quality gardening tools in Europe and is represented in more than 80 countries worldwide. Between 2015 and 2018, the company increased its worldwide sales by 46 per cent to 663 million euros. Gardena is a brand of the Husqvarna Group, the world's largest manufacturer of power tools for forestry, landscape maintenance and gardening with about 13,000 employees in more than 40 countries.
L'Oréal to open world's largest logistics centre in Muggensturm near Karlsruhe
After a construction period of about one year, L'Oréal opened its new logistics centre in May 2019 in the Middle Upper Rhine region close to Karlsruhe. The CO2-neutral property covers an area of more than 100,000 square meters, making it L'Oréal's largest distribution centre worldwide and one of the most sustainable ones. An investment in the future, which shows the deep roots of the company in the German Southwest. From the new facility, the world market leader in the cosmetics industry will supply the markets in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The new distribution centre is of strategic importance for the L'Oréal Group as the capacity at the two former distribution centres in Karlsruhe was at its limit – and will now be almost doubled. Thus, the new logistics centre makes the company more efficient, agile and competitive. 450 employees work at the new distribution location. Sustainability was of particularly high priority for the new building as since the end of 2019, all of L'Oréal's locations throughout Germany are CO2-neutral. At the Muggensturm site, this is achieved, for example, by approximately 7,400 solar panels and sufficient green space on the roof for already settled animals. In addition to ecological factors, L'Oréal also committed itself to social issues. The investor and land owner of the new centre is the company Prologis, the global market leader in the logistics real estate sector. L'Oréal is present in 150 countries with 36 brands. In 2018, the group's worldwide turnover was around 26.9 billion euros. Products from three business divisions – consumer products, pharmacy cosmetics and products for professional use – are delivered from the new logistics centre.
L'Oréal's largest distribution centre worldwide (picture: L’Oréal Deutschland)
