Jul 23 2013
Diversified industrial manufacturer Eaton today celebrated the beginning of construction work on its new state-of-the-art Innovation Center in Roztoky. The ground breaking ceremony was attended by Eaton’s regional leadership, senior representatives of the Czech Technical University (CVUT), the Mayor of Roztoky u Prahy and the government agency Czech Invest as well as the site developers, Trigema.
Eaton is investing in the new facility to accommodate the rapid expansion of its European Innovation Center in Prague, which was opened in 2012. Eaton’s Innovation Center is currently located directly opposite the new building site in a facility shared with the CVUT. The new building will be completed around the end of 2014 with employees moving in from the beginning of 2015.
Eaton’s European Innovation Center develops power management solutions for the European market that help its customers in the electrical, hydraulic, aerospace and vehicle industries to manufacture more efficient, effective, sustainable and safe technology solutions. In addition to its investment in the new building and heavy duty lab infrastructure, Eaton is recruiting and adding highly skilled engineers from across the Czech Republic and beyond. Eaton is also working closely with its partners at the CVUT to provide scholarships to students from the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering. Under current plans, Eaton aims to expand its workforce at the Innovation Center from 25 employees today to more than 140 by the end of 2016.
“Eaton’s investment in its European Innovation Center represents a vote of confidence in the Czech Republic and its engineering talent pool as well as the importance of European industry as a driver of global innovation in the realm of power management,” said Ram Ramakrishnan, Eaton’s executive vice president and chief technology officer. “We look forward to working with our valued partners at the CVUT and our colleagues across Eaton to realize our ambitious growth plans for the Innovation Center over the coming years,”
added Ramakrishnan.
“Eaton chose to locate its Innovation Center in Roztoky due to its close proximity to the CVUT campus, city center and airport. The building will be highly energy efficient and sustainable due to the incorporation of many advanced technologies such as geothermal heating and cooling as well as water recycling systems,” said Jan Vondras, director and head of the Eaton Innovation Center. “The building will also be fitted out with state-of-the art labs as well as an Eaton Experience Center that will showcase Eaton’s wide range of power management solutions for visitors to the facility,” added Vondras.
“Eaton is helping to create high value job opportunities for our students which will only increase as the Innovation Center in Roztoky expands. The opportunity for our students are tremendous as Eaton’s team is dynamic and conducting very wide ranging research and development collaborating with an international engineering team spanning the US, China and India as well as across Europe,” said Václav Havlíček, rector at the CVUT.
About Eaton
Eaton is a diversified power management company providing energy-efficient solutions that help our customers effectively manage electrical, hydraulic and mechanical power. A global technology leader, Eaton acquired Cooper Industries plc in November 2012. The 2012 revenue of the combined companies was $21.8 billion on a pro forma basis. Eaton has approximately 103,000 employees and sells products to customers in more than 175 countries.