NEW BERLIN, Wis. - The 1 millionth ABB standard general purpose drive - type ACS550 and ACH550 - rolled off the production line, marking a historic milestone as the first of an ABB drive range to hit this significant figure.

Five years ago, the first drive of this family was manufactured at ABB’s Helsinki factory, and demand has grown so much that the drive line now is produced out of five factories on three continents. To mark the occasion of this production milestone, each of the factories held celebrations on their factory floors on Tuesday, Dec. 2 morning.

“This is a great milestone for the entire ABB drives business and yet more proof of the fantastic growth that we are experiencing with low-voltage drives in ABB,” said Pekka Tiitinen, group vice president, and head of the Low Voltage Drives business unit. “This product family has been designed to fulfill customer needs globally. Consequently, it is a worldwide sales success and clearly has contributed to our increased global market share in low voltage drives.”

Panu Virolainen, vice president, Component AC, also acknowledged the significant milestone for ABB.

“I want to take the opportunity to thank everyone who has contributed to the success of the ABB standard drive,” he said. “Most importantly, I want to thank all our customers who have made this success story possible. It is a success and a story that continues to evolve and develop.”

For more information, visit www.abb.com.

Publication date: 12/15/2008