The President of the Republic of Estonia, Alar Karis, visited ABB's motors and generators, as well as the drives factories in Jüri. The President and his entourage expressed their interest in the manufacturers´ day-to-day activities and future plans.
The visit to ABB is a significant event. The President, formerly a scientist himself, asked about ABB's cooperation with universities and other educational institutions. He was also interested in various aspects of the production processes and asked whether ABB ensures a sufficient influx of skilled workers and engineers. Also, what the on-the-job training would look like, for both, the engineers and skilled employees. The President brought out that it is important to instil an interest in science in young people from an early age, for a more lucrative future built upon values created by engineers.
ABB's expansion plans were discussed. Jukka Patrikainen, ABB's Lead Business Manager for the Baltic countries, confirmed that the company is growing thanks to talented engineers and that significant investments are planned in the nearest future. Largely made possible thanks to a skilled workforce and a strong team. "Following the expansion, ABB's Jüri plant will become the only stator manufacturer in Europe, which puts a big responsibility on the shoulders of the company's team and leaves us with the role of maintaining the relevant know-how across the old continent," Patrikainen commented.
Signe Nurms, ABB's Country Holding Officer for the Baltic States, told the President that ABB's integral approach to sustainability helps its customers make more environmentally conscious choices. Nurms explained that she sees sustainability playing a growing role in business development. Merilin Ednaševski, ABB's HR Manager for the Baltic countries, added that in addition to environmental sustainability, ABB is also committed to ensuring the well-being and development of its employees by continually investing in employee training and health promotion to create a safe and supportive working environment.
President Karis expressed a sincere interest in technology, amongst other discussing the use of robots and trends in the digitalisation of manufacturing. His warm and friendly attitude and sincere interest in technology left a deep impression on the ABB team.
In addition, technical topics were discussed, such as frequency converters and lifecycle management of wind turbine generators. Depending on the product, the entire product life cycle is managed on site in Jüri Onecampus, from pre-production research, product development to production. Therefore a motivied team is vital. It was underlined that supporting traditional engineering contributes to society at large.
ABB's technology campus in Jüri has also been visited in previous years by President Kersti Kaljulaid and President Toomas Hendrik Ilves.
