Company building manufacturing site and customer service center in Tennessee

ABB is investing $30 million in building a new manufacturing site in Memphis, Tenn., that will focus on smart products and the Internet of Things (IoT) for industries like oil and gas, power generation, mining, and health care.

By Eric R. Eissler March 5, 2015

The George R. Brown convention center in the center of Houston is where the ABB Automation and Power World is being held from March 2nd-5th, 2015. Image Courtesy: Eric R. EisslerABB is investing $30 million in building a new manufacturing site in Memphis, Tenn., to focus on smart products and the Internet of Things (IoT) for industries such as oil and gas, power generation, mining, and health care. CFE Media spoke with Brian Herington, U.S. local division manager of low-voltage products at the ABB Automation and Power World show in Houston, Texas. He talked about the $30 million investment in building a new manufacturing site and expanding its customer experience center for its Low-Voltage Products division in Memphis, Tenn., as well as the industry’s gradual movement toward the Internet of Things (IoT), and smart products. The investment is expected to create more than 200 jobs, with another 100 jobs expected to be added over the next five years. The facility will be located in the Memphis area and will cover more than 120,000 sq ft.

Applications for low-voltage products are targeted for the oil and gas, food and beverage, power generation, mining, and healthcare industries. ABB is spending more than $1.5 billion per year to innovate and bring new technologies to the market.

One of the new products to be manufactured at the new facility in Memphis is the SACE EMax 2 breaker, launched in fall 2014, which is expected to be the cornerstone of that plant’s product line. This breaker is a smart breaker and power manager with seven communication protocols and the ability to have a plug-and-play option, which allows it to communicate with other parts of the facility and manage energy. The SACE EMax 2 was designed with retrofits in mind, and this makes it easier to upgrade facilities. 

ABB plans on investing $30 million to create a manufacturing site and a customer experience center in Memphis, Tennessee as well as upgrade their training suite. Courtesy: ABBHerington emphasized that much of this technology is going to be part of the IoT and engineers should be learning and placing emphasis on these new smart technologies, which offer better solutions to end users. Herington feels strongly that this is one example of how the industry is progressing toward new dimensions of connectivity and smart integration.

The products have been assembled and portfolios built around vertical a market, which has provided better solutions for end users. Furthermore, the reduction in materials has made these devices smaller and lighter, in turn making them easier to use and integrate into legacy systems. The future is now and the new technologies should be taken advantage of, he suggested.

In addition to the manufacturing facility, ABB will invest in a customer experience center at its existing Memphis location, which is now the Americas headquarters for the division. ABB plans to upgrade its training suite to accommodate the requirements of its expanding product portfolio and commitment to best-in-class technical support and training. 

– Eric R. Eissler, editor-in-chief, Oil & Gas Engineering, eeissler@cfemedia.com

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ABB Automation & Power World 2015 is underway March 2-5 in Houston.

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