Ei Electronics
| File:Eielectronicslogo.jpg eielectronicscampus.jpg | |
| File:Eielectronicscampus.jpg | |
Formerly | Ei Company |
|---|---|
| ISIN | 🆔 |
| Industry | Smoke Alarm Manufacture, Carbon Monoxide Alarm Manufacture. |
| Founded 📆 | Original GE manufacturing operation established in 1963. Management Buyout by current owners in 1988. |
| Founder 👔 | |
| Headquarters 🏙️ | Shannon, Ireland |
Area served 🗺️ | |
| Brands | Aico,
Ei Electronics, Ei Electronics SAS (France), Ei Electronics GmbH (Germany), Ei Electronics Sp. z o.o (Poland), Ei Electronics Inc. (USA). |
| Revenue🤑 | €200 Million (2017) |
| Owners | Mick Guinee, Jim Duignan, Mike Byrne, Brendan Barry. |
| Members | |
Number of employees | 700+ (2018) |
| 🌐 Website | [Lua error in Module:WikidataIB at line 665: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value). ] |
| 📇 Address | |
| 📞 telephone | |
Ei Electronics[edit]
Ei Electronics (formerly known as the EI Company) is an Irish company headquartered in Shannon, which designs and manufactures CO and Smoke detection devices. All Of Ei's Manufacturing is based in the Shannon Free Zone adjacent to Shannon International Airport. Ei employs over 800 people worldwide and has subsidiaries in the USA, Poland, UK, France, Ireland, and Germany. Ei also sells products through a network of distributors in over 30 countries. In 2017, Ei generated over €200 million in revenue.
History & Growth[edit]
In 1963, General Electric (USA) established its Irish manufacturing operation in Shannon - the E.I. or 'Emerald Isle' Company as it was known originally. 25 years later, in 1988, following a Management Buy Out of GE's Irish interests in Shannon, led by then (and now current) Managing Director Michael Guinee and other members of his team, Ei Electronics was formed.
The Company's guiding principles are "Quality, Service and Innovation". The original owners after the Management Buyout have remained with the business to the present time, maintaining their roles and responsibilities within the Organisation. The Campus in Shannon includes three main buildings and occupies 23,000m2, the most recent addition being the Centre of Excellence, a modern training, meeting and demonstration facility which also comprises a Heritage and Manufacturing area, providing an insight into stages of the company's development and milestones.
Aico, appointed UK distributor in 1990, became a wholly owned subsidiary of the Group in 2004. Other direct sales, marketing and support subsidiaries were later established in Germany, France, Poland and the USA. Ei sells products in over 30 countries, with customers throughout Europe, the USA, the Middle East and Africa, South East Asia and Australasia. Ei today represents a fully vertically integrated manufacturing facility.
Products & Applications[edit]
Ei manufacture a range of Smoke and Carbon Monoxide detection devices for the residential sector. Ei's products and services are designed to protect lives in the home from the hazards of fire and carbon monoxide. From small one-off builds to larger multi-unit developments and schemes, the product suite delivers whole house protection to home owners and residential landlords.
Thermistor-based alarms, optical sensor based alarms, and Carbon Monoxide alarms are Ei's most popular products along with a suite of other more specialised products. CO Alarms have become a larger part of Ei's business especially in both the UK and Ireland as CO Gas is a constant hazard in the home due to Combustible Fuel boilers and open fireplaces.[1][2].
Features include: Interfacing with fire & security panels, providing building-wide alerts following an alarm in an individual residence, linking with telecare/warden call systems, providing notifications for external assistance in the event of a fire in the residence of a vulnerable person, connectivity with alarms and sprinkler systems throughout an entire building, and the triggering of a boiler shutdown in the event of a Carbon Monoxide leak.
Ei's current innovations focus on RF and Smart interconnected alarms and devices relating to solutions for remote monitoring and management of installations.
Manufacturing[edit]
All of Ei's products are manufactured at the Ei campus in the Shannon, with all engineering, quality and testing functions also at the campus. In-house designed and manufactured sensors are the core elements of the alarm products. These highly sensitive devices are assembled and calibrated within the manufacturing process. All of the other key components are also manufactured in-house, including populated printed circuit boards, plastic parts, enclosures, and piezo chamber assemblies. This approach is underpinned by an ongoing assessment of the ISO9001 quality management system allowing for flexibility, efficiency and control throughout the supply chain.
This fully integrated manufacturing philosophy includes through-hole and surface mount technologies in PCB assembly, together with a range of injection moulding machines supplying the complement of plastic parts and enclosures. Multiple proprietary and dedicated test and calibration equipment as well as fully and semi-automated assembly jigs and fixtures deliver output and quality. A changing competitive landscape during the 1990s drove the introduction of a Kaizen based methodology into the Company, a philosophy much akin to modern efforts of 'Lean Manufacturing' and waste management in a production system. Kaizen (改善), is the Japanese word for "improvement". In business, Kaizen refers to activities that continuously improve all functions and involve all employees from the CEO to assembly line workers. Ei's factory has an output of 10 million units annually.
Research & Technology[edit]
Since the earliest smoke alarm chamber design in 1978, a record of advanced patent registrations related to core technologies such as the alarm chambers, enclosure (housing) design, sensors, battery technology, and wireless interconnection technologies have all been granted to Ei.
Ei's research and innovation is centred around decreasing risk and injury due to fire in residential housing. Research and Development at Ei is centred around problem solving. Ei has patented multiple technologies with regards to Smoke and CO Alarm development including:
- Sensors
- Wireless RF Mesh Connectivity
- Easi-fit (Ease of Installation concept)
- Data Download (via both RF and Acoustic means)
- Battery Technology (10 Year & Rechargeable)
- Control Accessories
Certification & Quality at Ei[edit]
At Ei, all manufacturing processes and products are backed by 3rd party certifications across the markets in which they operate. Ei are BSI certified to the latest ISO Quality and Environmental and Health and Safety Management Systems. Utilising Concurrent Development and Design for Manufacturing (DFM) techniques, quality is maintained throughout the product development cycle, including the supply chain and the distribution network.
Kaizen cellular assembly with 'single piece flow' and 'continuous improvement' are key components in the quality assurance process. As an integral part of the assembly process, each individual alarm is tested and calibrated in the relevant environment in which it is expected to operate - that is Smoke, Heat or Carbon Monoxide. Every single alarm is tested at multiple points during it's manufacture to ensure it meets quality standards. The final in-process and random checks ensure that quality assurance has been applied.
Expert training in the use, installation and maintenance of products plays an essential role in an end-to end quality assurance regime. To this end Ei have a history of providing accredited training courses to the industry in the markets in which they operate.
Corporate Social Responsibility[edit]
Ei's corporate culture puts an emphasis on contributing to the communities it operates within,by supporting local businesses, schools, universities, sporting institutions and charities. Since it's inception, Ei has shown an enduring commitment to conducting business in a socially responsible and ethical manner, for the good of customers, employees, and local communities. Ei subscribes to the high environmental precedent set in the ISO14001 standard.
Social events and Sporting activities have always been important for Ei with the active Sports and Social Club being responsible for setting up any teams etc. interested in competing. Sports played at Ei include Golf[3], Hurling[4], Rugby[5] and Football.
Ei have a long history of charitable donations to various organisations and healthcare facilities and have donated a considerable amount to both the local Shannon area and the Mid-West region as a whole such as donating to local hospices[6] and schools, sponsoring projects in the Young Scientist exhibition[7], and aiding local businesses by helping develop the local Chamber of Commerce[8]. Aico also has a very active corporate public identity and engages continuously with different facets of the community in Shropshire, and the Greater English community as a whole through various activities[9].
External Links[edit]
- US Website
- French Website
- German Website
- Spanish Website
- Italian Website
- Polish Website
- Portugese Website
References[edit]
- ↑ "Carbon monoxide alarms to be compulsory from September". The Irish Times. Retrieved 2018-07-11.
- ↑ "New regulations next year to prevent carbon monoxide leaks, Seanad told". The Irish Times. Retrieved 2018-07-11.
- ↑ Reinhardt, Cian (5 June 2018). "Midsummer Fairways for Shannon Chamber Members". Limerick Post. Retrieved 27 June 2018.
- ↑ Fitzpatrick, Oliver (5 January 2018). "EI Electronics claim Inter-firm hurling title". The Clare Herald. Retrieved 27 June 2018.
- ↑ "Ambitious Clare outfit flying high in Shannon - Independent.ie". Independent.ie. Retrieved 2018-06-28.
- ↑ "'Unique' gesture hailed after donation to Milford in Limerick". Retrieved 2018-07-27.
- ↑ "And the winners are.... Ireland's budding scientists nab prestigious prizes at the BT Young Scientist expo - Independent.ie". Independent.ie. Retrieved 2018-06-28.
- ↑ "Chamber expands operations to Shannon Free Zone". Limerick Post Newspaper. 2017-11-18. Retrieved 2018-06-28.
- ↑ "Students take part in the 'Aico Alarm Challenge' | Shropshire Live". Shropshire Live. 2018-07-03. Retrieved 2018-07-04.
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