SKF plans to build new technical centers in Sweden and the Netherlands to perform advanced product development and testing for lubrication systems and services as well as for bearings, sales and engineering.
The Gothenburg, Sweden-based company said that two centers together will support its five technology platforms – bearings, seals, mechatronics, lubrication systems and services. Mechatronics is the combination of mechanical engineering, computing, and electronics, as used in the design and development of new manufacturing techniques
The new center in Nieuwegein, the Netherlands, will work closely with SKFs main engineering and research center where SKF researches areas such as advanced dynamic simulations for bearings, advanced lubrication development and the principles of tribology. The new center in Gothenburg, Sweden, will support SKFs manufacturing development center.
Alan Begg, senior vice president for SKF Group technology and development, said in a news release that the technical centers in Europe will focus on areas such as advanced product development, technical data management and testing. At full capacity, it is estimated that we will need to employ over 100 new engineers in Nieuwegein and around 50 in Gothenburg. They will work in the areas of product engineering and development, as well as testing metallurgy, chemistry and bearing performance analysis.
SFK already has a technical center India in Bengaluru, and is expanding its technical center China and moving it to the new campus at Jiading, Shanghai.
In the last four years, SKF has more than doubled the number of patent filings, which shows that the increased investment we have made in R&D is bringing results, said Tom Johnstone, SKF president and CEO. The opening of these centers reinforces our commitment to increase our investment in research and development and bring it even closer to customers.