Jotron expands Lithuanian presence

  • 2013-08-30
  • From wire report

KAUNAS - The Norwegian company Jotron, which produces modern communications devices for the world’s largest airports and shipping companies, is expanding its business in Lithuania, reports the Web site investlithuania.com. The company will at the end of the year move its Lithuanian operation into a new purpose-made factory in Kaunas.
The factory will be outfitted with new technology, and the company is planning to increase its production volume and establish a local product development department. A total of 2.7 million euros will be invested, with plans to employ 35 employees over the next three years to handle the increased demand for the company’s products.

“As we planned our expansion, we had to choose between Lithuania and southeast Asia. Lithuania is familiar to us. We’ve been operating here for 12 years and we are pleased with the results of our Kaunas branch. Lithuanian electronics engineers are highly qualified, the work culture here is similar to that in Norway and there is a good infrastructure for business development. The team at Invest Lithuania played an important role in encouraging us to expand here,” said Merete Berdal, chairman of the board at Jotron, when explaining the rationale of the company’s decision.

The company exports innovative products, which include maritime rescue communication and automatic identification systems, ship internal communication systems, offshore oil and gas alarm systems as well as air traffic control radio and recording systems, to more than 60 countries around the world. Up until now, the Lithuanian branch has mainly produced components, but after the expansion it will also produce some fully finished and technologically advanced products. Moreover, the Kaunas branch will use clean and environmentally friendly production technology.

“The strengthening of Jotron’s scientific research and the expansion of its production branch will have a positive impact on the development of the electronics industry in Lithuania, generating additional opportunities for Lithuanian businesses to supply the company with parts and raw materials,” said Milda Darguzaite, managing director of Invest Lithuania.

Jotron has branches in Norway, USA, UK, Singapore and Lithuania. Since 2001, the company has an electronic devices factory in Kaunas, currently employing more than 80 specialists.
The company is a Norwegian private limited company with more than 40 years of continuous operation in international markets, combined with a sound financial base, it says. Jotron develops and manufactures communication systems for the maritime and aerospace markets. As a result of the continuous close cooperation with national and international laboratories and authorities, the group’s high quality products and services meet, and often surpass, the latest industry standards. It has 250 employees working in the main office and at divisions in the USA, UK, Singapore and Lithuania (Kaunas). The group,s turnover was 41.4 million euros last year, with 7.2 million euros coming from the Kaunas branch.

Invest Lithuania is a Lithuanian government agency that provides free advice and introductions to on-the-ground experts for global companies interested in doing business in Lithuania. The agency serves as a point of contact for foreign companies, and guides international businesses through every step of the process of setting up operations in Lithuania. Invest Lithuania also provides information on Lithuania’s highly-skilled yet cost-competitive labor force, tax incentives, and financing options, it says. The agency has worked with numerous well-known global companies that have taken advantage of Lithuania’s many incentives to expand their businesses by placing some aspects of their operations in Lithuania.