31 May 2009 Power Eng. Int.
Siemens is further expanding production capacity at its gas turbine manufacturing plant in Berlin.
The company has opened a further production facility in the Moabit district in the presence of Karl-Theodor Freiherr zu Guttenberg, Federal Minister of Economics and Technology, and Peter Löscher, President and CEO of Siemens AG.
This expansion of production capacity will create 200 jobs. Almost one-third of the total investment of EUR42m ($54m) was channeled into the new production facility.
In the future it will be possible to produce approximately 14 000 gas turbine blades and vanes there every year. Gas turbines are deployed in power plants around the globe for eco-friendly power generation.
«We are pleased that Siemens is sticking with the Berlin location and not only securing jobs but also creating new ones even in these turbulent times,» said Karl-Theodor Freiherr zu Guttenberg at the opening ceremony in Berlin.
The new production facility, which measures more than 3000 square meters, bears the EU’s «Green Building» label by virtue of its design. The building’s energy consumption will be 25 per cent lower than statutory requirements.
This will enable annual carbon dioxide savings of 1775 metric tons – that is equivalent to the emissions from approximately 1000 mid-range automobilies clocking up 10 000 kilometers per year.
Turbines have been produced in the Peter Behrens building, a protected historic monument, at the Siemens manufacturing plant for 100 years.
The gas turbine manufacturing plant in Berlin has a work force of approximately 2800 from 34 nations. It is the Siemens Energy Center of Competence for the production of innovative, high-efficiency and eco-friendly gas turbines with ratings up to 340 MW.
The blades and vanes produced in the new building are the most important components of a gas turbine. The efficiency of the entire power plant is dependent on their performance.
The higher the efficiency, the lower the fuel consumption and the CO2 emissions with a simultaneous increase in output. A single turbine is fitted with approximately 2500 blades and vanes.
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