maxon inaugurates Technology Center IV and invests in renewable energies

In Obwalden (Switzerland), maxon has invested CHF 16 million into erecting a new production building at the exact same location where everything started 60 years ago. Where shearing foils were made back in the day, precision drive systems for high-tech applications are now produced.

At the headquarters of drive specialist maxon, a little bit of history has vanished to make space for the future. During the past three years, the company's oldest production building was torn down, leaving only the foundation walls – and then reconstructed, with an additional floor and the new name Technology Center IV (TC IV). This is the spot where maxon’s success story started 60 years ago, when Interelectric AG was founded. Motors and drive systems were still far off in the future; instead, shearing foils for razors were produced using galvanic processes. The distinctive building with its sawtooth roof was a landmark on the Sachseln campus for decades, even after many additional buildings were added through the years.

maxon has invested CHF 16 million in the new Technology Center IV. This includes building the new production facility that offers 2400 square meters of floorspace, renovating the office wing, and replacing the energy center. The old oil heating system has been replaced by an efficient ground water heat pump. Like the other Technology Centers on the site, the new building has a photovoltaic system on the roof, with a peak power of 120 kW. Including the existing systems, the Sachseln campus is thus now equipped with a capacity of 670 kW in total.

Starting at the beginning of October, the existing production lines, temporarily hosted elsewhere on the campus, will be moved to TC IV. Additionally, new drive systems are produced there, for example for medical technology, robotics or the automotive industry. One of new assembly lines being created in the new space will produce special motors needed for highly dynamic shock absorbers in luxury sports cars. “We have an excellent infrastructure,” says Daniel von Wyl, the site manager. “With the new building, we are making another huge leap regarding sustainability and the environment. On this site, maxon is now already producing as much power as approx. 100 single-family houses. With the additional production floorspace in TC IV, we have created the prerequisites for new products and projects.”

Completion of TC IV also marked the end of the construction work at the headquarters for the time being. However, maxon is also investing in other countries, such as the UK. In the coming years, a modern production building will be erected there for Parvalux, which became part of the maxon Group in 2018.