Thule Group inaugurates new global Thule Test Center™ in Hillerstorp

Thule Group’s new global Thule Test Center™ in Hillerstorp, Småland, is inaugurated. With doubled space, significant investments in new technology and increased capacity, additional and more advanced testing is enabled of Thule’s traditional and new product categories.

The inauguration of the Thule Test Center™ on September 3 is an opportunity to open the doors to clients, the public and industry, and tell more about the expansion of what has become the industry's largest and most advanced testing center. Thule Group has expanded the test center from 600 sqm from 2008 to 1,200 sqm and has invested an additional 20 MSEK in equipment for a number of tests and competence by increasing the working force. The investment enables testing of all products in Thule Group’s expanding product portfolio.

-Thule Group was founded in Hillerstorp in 1942 and has always had an important part within the company. During the last years, we have continued to invest in mostly development. With the expansion of the new global Thule Test Center™ we increase the technical competence, the capacity and ability to test products  with a range that covers both traditional products, our newly launched categories such as strollers and mobile shells, but also future products, says Magnus Welander, CEO of Thule Group.

Thule has developed its own "Thule Test Program™" with over 25 custom Thule standards that enables the bar for security to be raised substantially. These surpasses ISO standards by far. Thule implements both standard tests required for the products to be approved under the prevailing laws and regulations, but are more extreme and far-reaching tests. Everything from the fall-, impact, shock and strength tests to that the products are subjected to the corresponding Australian heat, the ice cold in Siberia and the sunshine of Arizona. These are complemented with real environmental tests where the products are tested again and again in their authentic environment to reach the ambitious targets set.

Please see short movies from when the Thule Test Center™ (Youtube) tests products in the areas of products for active parents, cycling, backpacks and mobile shells.

 Short facts about Thule Test Center™

• Size: 1,200 sq. Equivalent to about 5 tennis courts
• Number of employees: Thule Group has 260 employees in Hillerstorp of which 55 people work with product development, design and testing in Thule Test Center™.
• Tests conducted: Everything from fall, impact, shock and strength tests to that the products are subjected to the corresponding to Australian heat, the ice cold of Siberia and the sunshine of Arizona. These are complemented with product tests in their real environment.
• Products tested: equipment for cycling, water and winter sports, roof boxes, bicycle carts, buggies, laptop and camera bags, backpacks and cases for mobile phones, etc.
• Number of possible tests: 500 different standards can be verified
• Number of tests / year: approximately 1,000 pcs
• Number of days one year of driving is simulated at: 1 day
• Number of months where 2 years of sunlight is simulated in: 2 months
• Number of simulated run mil per year: 5.6 million km (equivalent to 460 times around the world)
• Climate-testing lab: Every year Thule Group simulates 5.6 million kilometres driving in tests of various products. The climate impact caused by these laboratory tests are only a fraction of the comparable impact from the real car testing.
  The consumption of electricity in 2014 was approximately 287,000 kWh. which means that less than 3 kilograms of carbon dioxide[1] provides carbon footprint. To test drive 5.6 million kilometres by car would emit 750 tons of carbon dioxide.

[1] Thule Group uses climate-friendly energy sources, where climate change is less than 10 g/kWh,

Downloads

• Press release in pdf

 About Thule Group

Thule Group is a world leader in products that make it easy to bring the things you care for – easily, securely and in style, when living an active life. Under the motto Active Life, Simplified, we offer products within two segments: Outdoor&Bags (e.g. equipment for cycling, water and winter sports, roof boxes, bike trailers, baby joggers, laptop and camera bags, backpacks and cases for mobile handheld devices) and Specialty (pick-up truck tool boxes).

Our products are sold in 136 markets globally. There are more than 2,000 of us working for Thule Group at nine production facilities and more than 35 sales locations all over the world. Net sales for 2014 amounted to 4.7 billion SEK. Thule Group is a public company listed at Nasdaq Stockholm.

For more information, please visit www.thulegroup.com

Source Thulegroup©