“The most important thing for us is to reach people, because it is people that create companies. We are sure that in Kaunas, with the assistance of Kaunas University of Technology, we will be able to find the people we need”, said Gerold Lucas, Member of the Board of the HELLA Group in the interview published by Invest Lithuania and Verslo Žinios.
German company Hella, one of the largest car component manufacturers in the world, has chosen Lithuania for its new production facility. The construction of the new factory in Kaunas Free Economic Zone has already started. It is being estimated that it will have annual production worth of €250 million. If this module proves to be successful, the factory will be supplemented with 4 more modules.
“We have annual growth of 8%, and for this reason we need new capacity. In early 2016 we started looking for a place for our new plant. We had collected information about 21 different locations in Europe, then narrowed our search down to 13 countries. At the end, Lithuania matched all our priorities”, said Mr Lucas.
He revealed that the profit-making growth required the continuous improvement of manufacturing processes and increasing the degree of automation. For this, according to Mr Lucas, the company will look for skilled and motivated engineers – to install semi- or fully automated manufacturing lines.
Lithuania, being a member of the EU, NATO and the Eurozone impressed the German car industry giant by business-friendly attitude, efficiency and friendliness of people.
The company is now planning annual investments of €15-20 million and this process (subject to circumstances and results) might take from 3 to 6 years.
Hella is one of many global manufacturers, including Continental, Kitron, Hollister, Hella, Hegelmann Transporte and Peikko, who have decided to start or expand their businesses in Kaunas region last year. It is being estimated that international investments in Kaunas region will amount to 265 million euros in the near future. According to global investors, the universities in the region, which prepare highly qualified professionals, were often one of the reasons for choosing Kaunas.
