GE Global Research has opened a building at its technology campus in Bangalore, India.
“These engineers and researchers are part of a network of 30,000 technologists across GE who work to redefine what”™s possible,” said Mark Little, senior vice president and director of GE Global Research. “They work on health care initiatives that save lives. They are working to bring safe drinking water to those who need it. They help develop reliable, clean power for millions of people around the world. They work today to help the future.”
GE Global Research is the technology development arm of the General Electric Co.
The new 350,000-square-foot research facility is an environmentally designed building, which is Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design gold certified and will house nearly 2,000 researchers.
GE”™s “ecomagination” initiative commits the company to double its level of investment in clean technologies from $700 million in 2005 to more than $1.5 billion by next year.
Since 2001, GE has made capital investments totaling $330 million to expand its global research facilities, including large investments in its headquarters in upstate New York, the addition of a new center in Munich, Germany, and further expansion of its research operations in Shanghai.
Little said the growth in India complements the strong growth at the company”™s Global Research center in the United States during the past eight years. Since 2001, employment at the Niskayuna, N.Y. facility has grown 15 percent.
“Our mission today is the same as it was when Thomas Edison founded GE,” said Little. “We drive breakthrough technology that the world needs, and that will help our company grow. This latest expansion is just another sign of our commitment to technology and innovation.”
Currently, GE Global Research employs more than 2,800 employees around the world, including 1,900 employees in Niskayuna.
Little said over the past seven years, GE”™s annual research and development expenditures have nearly doubled from $2.3 billion to $4.3 billion.
Connecticut Business and Industry Association economist and Vice President Pete Gioia sees upsides to the plant half a world away.
“Some will say they should have built it here,” he said. “But you have to remember GE is a global company.
“You”™ve got to look at it with an open mind,” he said. “What are the supply issues? What are they making? Will they be able to sell products that are used here more cheaply, saving the taxpayer money? There is a huge potential in the Asian markets and this benefits GE stockholders and the bottom line. The water-borne illness issue alone is huge. Also, theses types of projects can create home-office jobs here. This plant might benefit us.”
