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Lightning strikes and electrical surges disrupt critical operations and cause billions of dollars in damage to structures and equipment each year. With growing reliance on electronics and data centers, ABB is investing more than $35 million in a greenfield facility in Nottingham, United Kingdom, to meet demand for its Furse earthing and lightning protection solutions. The site is expected to open in early 2025 and will integrate advanced technology, flexible automation, R&D and testing, and digital processes to boost production capacity and enhance efficiency and sustainability.
More than 100 employees will relocate to the new facility from the ABB Installation Products Nottingham foundry, which has continually operated for over a century in the area where Furse originated in 1893. In addition to an expanded footprint, the site will be constructed in line with the BREEAM Excellent rating for sustainable building standards and include efficient equipment and technology, photovoltaic rooftop cells, electric vehicle charging stations, and processes centered on reducing waste and energy. The space will be designed to support collaboration and training, accelerate R&D, and drive automation to serve European customers and increase available inventory globally.
ABB said in the press release that an estimated 1.4 billion lightning flashes occur annually around the world – more than 42 strikes each second. Even indirect lightning strikes up to a kilometer away can create transient overvoltages and have devastating consequences such as fire, shock hazards, equipment damage and costly outages, resulting in downtime and financial losses.
The U.K. investment adds to more than $165 million in ABB Installation Products global expansions and improvements since 2020 to increase manufacturing capacity, drive innovation and sustainability, and bring needed products closer to customers. ABB Installation Products currently has six locations in Europe in Belgium, France, Hungary, Italy, Switzerland and the U.K., where it employs more than 100 associates in Nottingham who develop, test and produce a broad range of Furse solutions. The new campus will occupy nearly five acres in Fairham Business Park, within close proximity of ABB’s existing Wilford Road site and is accessible for employees, customers, suppliers and distribution partners.