HBK Porto celebrates new site in grand style

This exciting new chapter for HBK was marked by the raising of the Portuguese and British flags, accompanied by a rendition of the national anthems, performed by a group from the Vila do Conde Conservatory.

Upon arrival, guests and staff enjoyed a reception, followed by opening speeches from HBK Plant Manager, Lus Rodrigues, Director of Optical business, Lus Ferreira and short commentaries by Spectris Chief, Andrew Heath and HBK President, Ben Bryson.

During his presentation, HBK's President, Ben Bryson said: "What we've seen today is phenomenal progress; I'm proud and privileged to be part of this team and see the progress made to empower the innovators for a cleaner, healthier and more productive world. My vision for HBK is to be a leading technology provider that enables innovators to develop premium products and bring them to the market faster, whilst also using precision solutions to enhance processes and assets. We have some fantastic capability inside this building and a bright future ahead of us."

HBK Chief Operating Officer, Simon Bosket said: "I'm delighted to be able to celebrate the new opening of our new, expanded Porto site. When we announced the investment plans two years ago, we said this was about future-proofing our operations to ensure we deliver our strategy. Under the leadership of Luis Rodrigues, the Portoteam has done an amazing job focusing on our Lean Operational Excellence principles to turn the shell of a building into the bright, clean new facility we have today. It's also a big step forward for our Net Zero strategy, especially as we have achieved LEED certification(Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), aglobally recognised symbol of sustainability achievement."

Luis Rodrigues adds: "This is a day I've looked forward to for two and a half years. What we've accomplished is a true team effort, built on Spectris values and powered by the Spectris Business System. Our goal is to create a world-class, green manufacturing site that supports the growth of our OEM Sensors business in Europe, provides strain gauge finishing for sensors and the European strain gauge market, and builds on our strong optical business, which was founded 21 years ago. We're also proud to continue expanding HBK's regional and global support functions here in Portugal. This site is a key step toward a more agile supply chain, helping us serve our customers better by cutting lead times and reducing our carbon footprint."

The new site is five times bigger than the previous one, enabling it to become a secondary hub for strain gauge finishing and OEM sensor production, alongside its existing FiberSensing work. And it will also provide a space for colleagues and visitors.