Abacus & China: Investing for the Future
Abacus Lighting has officially opened a new, state-of-the art
manufacturing facility this week in Shanghai, China to help increase
production capacity and meet Abacus’s ambitious global growth plans.
With 20,000 square metres of space, Abacus’s newest and largest
greenfield factory site, located at Fengpu Industrial Park in the
Fengxian District, is still within striking distance of the
metropolis of downtown Shanghai. Double the size of the company’s
original Chinese factory - which was located in the Minhang District
– the new factory and offices occupy 8,000 square metres with
surplus space on the site purchased with future expansion in mind.
Abacus Shanghai’s 81 employees have now been moved to their new
location which was deliberately selected for its reasonable distance
from the previous factory, in order to retain the existing
workforce.
Abacus employs 268 people worldwide and exports to over 42
countries. Specialising in the design, manufacture, installation and
maintenance of exterior lighting, Abacus was one of the first
British companies to invest in China fifteen years ago following a
series of successful trade missions with the 48 Group.
Abacus originally entered China in 1995 under a joint venture
agreement with the Shanghai Port Authority. In 2006, Abacus
(Shanghai) Lighting Limited purchased its partner’s share in the
company and became a wholly owned subsidiary of Abacus Holdings Ltd
which it remains today.
The new Fengpu production facility showcases the most advanced
technologies in lighting manufacturing production and will boost
Abacus’s innovation in the region and worldwide says Group Managing
Director, Andrew Morris-Richardson.
The new factory was officially opened at an exclusive evening
reception at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Knightsbridge, London,
sponsored by HSBC and supported by the 48 Group, including a keynote
from 48 Group Chairman, Stephen Perry.
Morris-Richardson said, “This new double-sized factory supports
Abacus’s ambitious global growth plans. China overtook Japan as the
world’s second biggest economy in the second quarter of 2010 and
having a new, improved facility in China will not only increase our
production capacity but improve our worldwide export opportunities.
We’re excited about what our future in China holds.”
Stephen Perry, Chairman of the 48 Group said, “The 48 Group has been
part of Abacus’s Chinese journey since 1989 and it’s wonderful to
have witnessed their growth during that time. Abacus is a great
example of a British company investing in a growing economy overseas
and the new facility in the Fengxian District of Shanghai is
testament to the company’s hard work and long term vision.”
As well as doubling the size of their Chinese facility, Abacus
recently announced plans to build a manufacturing plant in St
Petersburg Russia following the opening of a sales office in Moscow
in 2010.
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