How did a small Swiss town become home to four global billionaire brands?
CELEBRATING ITS 50TH ANNIVERSARY: The Centre in Orbe was inaugurated in 1959 under the name of Laboratoire Industriel d'Orbe (LINOR)
Have you ever given a second thought to the people who develop Nestlé products? Who are the technologists and engineers behind Nescafé, Nespresso or Nesquik? These people live in and around Orbe, a small Swiss town with fewer than 6,000 inhabitants.
On 27th June 2009, Nestlé celebrated the 50th anniversary of its research and development in Orbe by opening its doors to honoured guests, employees and their families, and retirees. The day was enjoyed by young and old, by guests from the canton of Vaud and employees. It was a chance for former directors of the Product Technology Centre to meet former colleagues as well as the new generation of scientists and engineers.
The celebration was opened with speeches from Werner Bauer, Nestlé’s Chief Technology Officer; Valerio Nannini, Director of PTC Orbe; and Roland Decorvet, Head of Nestlé Switzerland. After the speeches there was plenty of time to discover some of PTC Orbe’s achievements over the years. An exhibition illustrated the role of PTC Orbe in developing high quality food products and services for Nestlé’s consumers world-wide.
The day was enjoyed by everyone, young and not-so-young. It was also a wonderful occasion for former directors of R&D at Orbe to meet their old colleagues as well as the new generation of scientists and engineers.
About PTC Orbe
The Centre in Orbe was the first of Nestlé’s R&D Centres, being inaugurated in1959 under the name of Laboratoire Industriel d’Orbe (LINOR). Since then Nestlé R&D at Orbe has grown in size and importance. In 2007 Nestlé opened a second R&D facility, the Nestlé Professional Beverage Centre, on the same site.
Today, Orbe is the largest of Nestlé’s 26 Product Technology and R&D centres, world-wide. In total, over 500 hundred people work in R&D at Orbe in a variety of functions. The Centre has global technical leadership in coffee, powdered beverages, cereals, in-home delivery systems, and Nestlé Professional powdered beverages.
"The products developed at PTC Orbe represent about 15% of sales from Nestlé in the world, and a significant portion of its profit. Success then, but we have little time to rest on our laurels. In an economic environment that is increasingly competitive, we need to innovate constantly in order to best serve our customers, and anticipate their expectations." Valerio Nannini, Director of PTC Orbe
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More information: Speeches, background information and images
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