Pump manufacturer Wilo shows that the right strategy can make any site attractive.
Dortmund. In the midst of the Ruhr district, deep in western Germany. The name evokes images of abandoned industrial sites from the age of coal mining and steel production. And of soccer—the Borussia Dortmund club, of course. Less likely to jump to mind are associations with high-tech production or the Internet of Things. But the Wilo pump-making company, which is a strong local supporter of Dortmund, is intent on changing that.
The company is currently investing more than one hundred million euros in a completely new campus that will produce pumps for private households and industry. What leads a company to invest such enormous sums in a highwage location like Germany? And in Dortmund, of all places.
