Sennheiser upgrading German headquarters

Sennheiser
is expanding its corporate headquarters in Germany. Sennheiser plans to extend the site by the addition of a
production and technology center, as well as a customer center. A total sum of
more than €20 million (approximately $32 million USD) is to be invested by 2011.
“The
continuous increase in our activities, and the resulting growth in our workforce
make it necessary for us to expand our company headquarters,” explained
Prof. Dr. J rg Sennheiser, chairman of the supervisory board, at Sennheiser’s
annual press conference. “This strengthening of the Wedemark site will
support the positive development of the global Sennheiser Group and will
further increase our customer orientation.”

A structural plan for the company site was developed in cooperation with Essen-based
architect J rgen Reichardt, and is to be implemented over the next few years. Construction
will begin this November with the building of a new production and technology
center at a cost of around €10 million (approximately $16 million USD). This
will be followed, at a later date, by the construction of an international
customer center. “The expansion of the corporate headquarters is a clear
indication of the Sennheiser family’s commitment to Wedemark as a manufacturing
location,” said Volker Bartels,
speaker of the executive team and president, manufacturing and logistics, commenting
on the construction project.

The new technology and production center will provide around 5,000 square-meters
(over 53,800 square-feet) of production area on two levels, which can be
flexibly used according to requirements and order volumes. The surrounding
offices can be freely assigned as required. “This flexible use of
facilities corresponds to the state-of-the-art in factory planning,” Bartels
explained. “In addition to the company management and the works council,
Sennheiser employees from various departments were also involved in planning
the initial layout. This allowed experience and knowledge from the most varied disciplines to be integrated into the designs.” The new production
and technology center will be used primarily for the manufacture of wireless systems
and microphones, as well as for developing and testing new technologies.
The new building project is at the same time the prerequisite for the relocation
of the almost two hundred employees currently working at the Burgdorf site.
Combining the two factories in Wedemark will improve efficiency by streamlining
the production processes. What’s more, the close proximity to the development
facilities will bring significant advantages in ramping up production of new
products. The relocation of employees from Burgdorf will probably take place at
the end of 2009.

After completion of the production and technology center, a customer center will
be built at the entrance to the site. It will create a representative environment
that will enable visitors and customers to experience the Sennheiser brand at
its headquarters. The initial design ideas for the customer center include
‘sound islands’ that introduce visitors to the subject of acoustics and a Sennheiser stage that allows products to be tested
in practical application.

“The
expansion of the existing architecture in Wedemark will enable all corporate
functions at the company headquarters to work more closely together and to
communicate more efficiently,” Bartels said. Not least, of course, the aim
is also to provide both Sennheiser employees and international visitors with a
future-oriented and attractive environment.