The manufacturing facility of Nord Drivesystems in Wiechliche, Poland (source: YouTube screenshot / Nord Drivesystems)The Wiechliche facility of Nord in Western Poland is the company’s second Polish production facility and is where the IE5+ synchonous motor is manufactured. The facility was established in 2019 but now requires production beyond its current capacity.
“The demand for the IE5+ motor and other electric motors is further increasing, and made this extension necessary,” explained Jörg Niermann, Head of Marketing at Nord. The facility is currently producing 10,000 motors per week and has a workforce of 220 employees. Both these numbers are expected to increase significantly following the expansion.
As part of the expansion, a geothermal heating system is also being installed at the facility. A total of 52 boreholes drilled to up to 250 meters depth will provide emissions-free heating to the newly expanded factory. Niermann further explains that the geology at Wiechliche makes it particularly advantageous for harnessing geothermal energy.
“Being a value-oriented family business, we take sustainability as an important part of our corporate responsibility, and here we see a good possibility to further reduce our corporate carbon footprint,” Niermann further said.
Construction work for the facility expansion has started in April 2023, and the new facility is expected to open by the second quarter of 2024.
Momentum has been growing for the growth of geothermal in Poland. Just this year, geothermal drilling had been announced in both Grodziec and Wolomin. Work has also started on the drilling of a 7-kilometer geothermal well at Podhale.
