With its 240 employees, Nidec ACIM (Appliance, Commercial and Industrial Motors) operates the last remaining production plant for refrigeration compressors for the household white goods sector in Europe at its Fürstenfeld site. Founded in 1973 in Kyoto, Japan, the conglomerate employs over 110,000 people worldwide. In Austria, Nidec has been expanding the site since taking over the plant in Styria in 2020 and has already invested more than EUR 40 million in production lines, automation and research and development.

Nidec is also planning for the future in Austria. Over the next two years, the Group plans to invest a total of more than 22 million euros in the Fürstenfeld site, split between two major projects: a new production line for inverters and in “ATOM”, the world’s most compact family of compressors with variable speed drive for use in domestic refrigerators; this compressor was designed entirely in Austria and sets new standards in terms of noise emission and efficiency, enabling energy consumption to be reduced by around 25% compared to traditional start/stop compressors.

“Nidec’s renewed investment in the Fürstenfeld site is a strong sign of Styria’s competitiveness and future viability. On the one hand, this strengthens regional value creation and, on the other, secures high-quality jobs,” says Willibald Ehrenhöfer, Provincial Councillor for Economic Affairs, Labour, Finance, Science and Research, who also emphasized the importance of research and development for Styria’s success in his statement: ”Research and development are one of our great strengths. Our well-trained specialists and the close cooperation with our universities and research institutions provide an ideal environment for companies like Nidec to develop pioneering projects – innovation made in Styria that sets new standards worldwide.”

“The decision of the global company Nidec to invest in Fürstenfeld shows that Austria is a convincing international business location. The success factor here is not only the innovative environment, but in particular the excellent cooperation between the federal and state governments and with our agencies,” says Severin Gruber, Secretary General at the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs, Energy and Tourism.

Nidec’s “Center of Excellence and Innovation”

The motors and related products manufactured by Nidec are used in various sectors such as household appliances, industrial applications, the automotive sector, energy supply and other industries. The “ACIM” business unit, which includes the Fürstenfeld site, comprises drive components for white goods such as refrigerators, washing machines and dishwashers, as well as commercial refrigerators and industrial applications.

Originally founded in 1982 by the Zanussi Group, the site in Fürstenfeld was operated by various companies. Nidec acquired the site in 2017, but was forced to relinquish the site due to decisions by the EU competition authority. After the plant was about to be closed by the new owner in 2020, Nidec acquired it again and reopened it.

“What has been achieved in Fürstenfeld over the last five years is remarkable. Since then, we have significantly expanded capacity, doubled the number of employees and production lines, introduced new product platforms and strengthened our R&D presence by increasing the number of experts on site. With our new investments, we are further expanding our ‘Center of Excellence and Innovation’,” affirms Valter Taranzano, First Senior VP of Nidec Corporation, CEO & President of Nidec Appliance Automotive Division.

“Our location benefits from the high level of qualification of our employees, Austria’s strategic position and our focus on innovation and sustainability. We cooperate closely with universities and various partners in this country to make household appliances more efficient. The current investments were made possible in particular by the strong support from the aws Twin Transition program and further research funding from the FFG, for example. We received comprehensive advice from the Austrian Business Agency (ABA) on all location decisions, which we not only greatly appreciate, but also see as key to maintaining our competitiveness,” says Taranzano.