AURORA, Ill. (April 24, 2012)—Grundfos celebrated the official launch of a new business-development “competency center,” serving all of North America and devoted exclusively to the municipal wastewater market. Located approximately 40 miles west of Chicago, the center is housed in the 105,000-square-foot, pump-manufacturing facility of the former Yeomans Chicago Corporation (YCC), which Grundfos acquired in December 2008.
Since that acquisition, the global pump manufacturer has invested several million dollars in new equipment and systems to upgrade the Aurora facility and ready the operation to begin production of Grundfos-brand waste water pump systems, previously made by the company in Europe and Asia.
Nearly 100 guests joined Grundfos personnel for a ribbon-cutting ceremony inaugurating the new Water Utility Center, led by Denmark’s Minister for Trade and Investment, Pia Olsen Dyhr and Dan Seals, assistant director of the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity.
Speaking at the ceremony, Grundfos North America CEO and president Jes Munk Hansen said: “This center is pivotal to Grundfos becoming a leader in the North American municipal waste water business. We have big ambitions for the next five years, as we strive to double—if not triple—our sales in that key segment, with commensurate growth in our product offering.”
The Danish pump maker has invested more than $50 million in municipal water-related activities in the United States during the past few years, including acquisitions, increased production and infrastructure, information systems, product launches and the hiring of key people. Over the next half-decade, the company expects to invest an equal amount in its North American operations. “These investments are part of a global strategy that aim to capture 10 percent of the worldwide municipal market and generate roughly $1.3 billion in export sales,” according to Hansen.