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The eBearing News
November 29, 2004
GGB Inaugurates Martin Bearing Plant
copyright © 2004 eBearing Inc.
GGB (formerly Glacier Garlock Bearings, a division of EnPro Industries, USA) officially opened its new
bearing manufacturing plant in Martin, Slovakia. Production of metal-polymer plain bearings is already online.
The Martin plant, announced in late 2003, is consolidating metal-polymer bearing production from
two other GGB facilities: Kilmarnock, Scotland, and Dolny Kubin, Slovakia. Both will be closed.
• 2004 article: GGB building new factory in Slovakia
The Kilmarnock factory specializes in the development and manufacture of aluminum and copper-based
bimetals which are fabricated into bearings, bushings and thrust washers. Kilmarnock supplies global
engine manufacturers both in the highway and off highway sectors. Dolny Kubin is a cold war era
facility which manufactured plain bearings under several owners since 1952.
Located in north central Slovakia, Martin the country's eighth largest city, with a population approaching
60,000. It is only 17km from the much smaller town of Dolny Kubin, so most workers from the Dolny Kubin
plant will be transferring to Martin.
GGB said the Martin plant will eventually employ between 250 and 300 workers, and it expects to
invest approximately $17 million to bring it fully online.
GBB also manufactures bearings in Heilbronn, Germany; Annecy and Dieuze, France; Barueru, Brazil; and
Thorofare, New Jersey, USA.
The company said the Martin plant is being built to give it better access to what have become some
of the world's fastest-growing industrial markets.
Bernd Fischer, GBB's President, said when the plant was announced, "In addition to supplying existing
customers in Western Europe, our new facility gives us a strong presence in the emerging markets of
Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union."
Announcing Martin's formal opening, Ernie Schaub President and CEO of EnPro, said, "The state-of-the-art
facility GGB has built in Slovakia is a vital example of EnPro's business strategy. It provides us with
cost-effective manufacturing, establishes us in a rapidly growing market, strengthens our competitive
position and improves our responsiveness to our customers' needs."
Formerly part of Goodrich, Glacier is the world's largest manufacturer of prelubricated and
self-lubricating metal-polymer plain bearings. Glacier has production facilities in the United States,
Germany, France, Slovakia and Brazil, along with 22 other operating units in 17 countries.
Under Goodrich, the company was assembled from Garlock Bearings and Glacier Industrial Bearing, which it
acquired from Dana in May 2001. Put together, Goodrich renamed the unit Glacier Garlock Bearings. In mid-2002,
Goodrich spun off its manufacturing businesses as EnPro Industries; Glacier Garlock is the key manufacturing
component of EnPro. In mid-2003, Glacier acquired Saver North America, Inc.
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- by Bruce A. Carr
from individual research,
tips and commercial sources.
Unauthorized reproduction is prohibited.
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eBearing.com ... for everything that moves™
Entire contents Copyright 1999-2008, eBearing Inc. All rights reserved.
eBearing.com and "... for everything that moves" are registered
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eBearing.com ... for everything that moves™
Entire contents Copyright © 1999-2008, eBearing Inc. All rights reserved.
eBearing.com and "... for everything that moves" are registered trademarks of eBearing Inc.
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