ABB was formed in 1988, when the Swedish Asea and the Swiss BBC Brown Boveri merged under the name of ABB. The two predecessors were founded in 1883 and 1891 respectively. As one of the Fortune top 500 companies, ABB is headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland.
ABB (www.abb.com) is a leader in power and automation technologies that enable utility and industry customers to improve their performance while lowering environmental impact. The ABB Group of companies operates in around 100 countries and employs about 135,000 people.
ABB's relationship with China dates back to 105 years ago when it supplied a steam boiler in 1907. In 1992, ABB invested in its first joint venture companies in Xiamen. In 1995, ABB’s holding company in China - ABB (China) Limited was set up in Beijing. Today, ABB has established a full range of business activities in China, including R&D, supply chain management, engineering, manufacturing, sales and services, with 18,300 employees, 35 local companies, and an extensive sales and service network across 80 cities. ABB’s total revenue in China records $5.1 billion in 2011, and 85% of its revenues are derived from its locally made products.
ABB is preferred supplier for customers in China. Among the top 100 electrical equipment companies in China in 2010, 10 were ABB’s local companies. ABB also keeps strong investment in attracting, developing and retaining talents, and is a widely recognized good employer in the country.
ABB keeps pushing the boundaries of technologies, and contributes to a long list of milestone projects in China, including
- The longest and highest capacity ultra-high-voltage direct current power link Jingping (Sichuan) – Sunan (Jiangsu), 7,200 MW, 2,090 km, 800kV (Order won in 2011. Project will be in operation by 2013)
- China’s first hi-speed railway Wuhan-Guangzhou (1,068km, 350km/h, project in operation in 2009)
- China’s largest offshore wind farm - Jiangsu Rudong Wind Farm (Orders won for both phase 1 and phase 2. Last order won in 2011)
- China’s first fully automated bulk-cargo terminal in Shanghai (Project in operation in 2007)
- The first electric propelled survey vessel in China (Order won in 2010)
- The world's most advanced and efficient rolling mill Shagang Group (Order won in 2007)
- The first China designed semi submersible drilling platform (Order won in 2008)
- The first China fully automated heavy truck press line (Project in operation in 2009)