GE’s commitment to the Capital Region of New York State is as old as the company, which was founded in Schenectady in 1878. Niskayuna alone is home to some 1,900 GE jobs, and the company’s footprint in the region is about to get even larger, as GE Transportation plans to add several hundred new jobs at its new sodium battery manufacturing plant over the coming years, as was featured on the front page of last Sunday’s Albany Times Union.
The plant, which will produce GE’s state-of-the-art Durathon battery, is set to employ 350 new workers. The batteries themselves were developed at the GE Global Research Center in Niskayuna and benefited from a $100 million investment by GE, including $2.5 million from a New York State Energy Research and Development Authority grant. The new batteries last up to 10 times longer than traditional backup storage systems, need little maintenance, produce no toxic chemicals, are recyclable, and have remote-monitoring capabilities, making them a viable solution for a multitude of markets.
“For an American company to succeed in today’s interconnected, global economy, the key differentiator is technology,” Mark Little, senior vice president and director of GE Global Research told the Times Union. “Technology is what separates our products from the competition.”
GE’s investment in new technologies such as Durathon helps to ensure the company will remain a positive part of the Schenectady area for years to come.
Links:
Check out the original article in the Albany Times Union: http://www.timesunion.com/default/article/GE-s-focus-aiding-region-665050.php
Learn more about the Durathon battery for energy storage: http://www.getransportation.com/energy-storage/energy-storage-blog/durathon-battery.html
Find out about the new Durathon battery manufacturing plant: http://www.gebatteryplant.com/new-battery-plant/
