To ensure sustainable growth in the Chinese market and to offer an attractive location, ebm‑papst decided to have a new local headquarters built in 2021 under the name "ONE Shanghai". After the completion of the construction in March, the interior furnishing and the move into the new building will now take place.

Until now, ebm‑papst China has been working at four locations in Shanghai. In addition to a headquarters with the administrative departments, there is a separate production plant and two external warehouses. In the new local headquarters "ONE Shanghai", all locations will be combined under one roof.

Thomas Nürnberger, CEO Air Technology APAC and CSO of the ebm‑papst Group, explains: "The new location will enable ebm‑papst China to bring all employees together in an attractive working environment. In addition, the new location is conveniently located to public transportation, highway, and Pudong Airport. Overall, this will significantly improve efficiency and interdepartmental communication in the future."

The building was custom-built by Shanghai Jingiao Group to meet the needs of the fan manufacturer. "ONE Shanghai" will have a total area of over 33,000 m², consisting of a warehouse with dock levellers and a 4-story building for production, research and development laboratories, office units and a canteen. Around 900 employees will work in "ONE Shanghai".

The move to the new headquarters will take place in phases over the coming months to minimize the impact on the production of the energy-efficient fans.

"With the new headquarters, we are responding to the continuous development of our Chinese business. For years, the ebm‑papst Group has been pursuing the "local for local" internationalization strategy to respond independently and in the best possible way to local customer needs and local market requirements, as well as to establish an independent supply chain. This also reduces our ecological footprint," says Dr. Klaus Geißdörfer, CEO of the ebm‑papst Group.

With its "local for local" strategy, ebm‑papst is continuously expanding its locations in the regions of Europe, Asia-Pacific and Americas and aligning them with the local market. In doing so, the fan manufacturer is establishing local supply chains, including material procurement, in addition to the production facilities.

In China, the company is also investing in the continuous expansion of its local development areas to be able to optimally adapt products and new developments to regionally varying market requirements. ebm‑papst China now employs around 70 engineers in its own research and development center.

ebm‑papst has been represented in China since 1996 and currently employs around 1,900 people at its locations across China including Shanghai, Xi’an, Beijing and Hongkong, with a turnover of 353 million EUR (fiscal year 2021/2022). In China and the Asia-Pacific region, the clean room, renewable energy, and data center sectors are important markets for ebm‑papst.
Due to the strict regulations of the Chinese government during the corona pandemic in 2022 and the resulting closure of the city of Shanghai, the handover of the headquarters on the part of the construction company to ebm‑papst was delayed. The grand opening of ONE Shanghai is expected to take place at the end of the year as soon as the relocations are completed.