The event brought together the president of the Government of Aragón, Jorge Azcón; the mayor of Zaragoza, Natalia Chueca; and company executives. “BSH is an example of Aragón’s industrial potential and our ability to develop technology, create jobs and compete on a global scale,” Azcón said. Lars Schubert, a member of the BSH Group’s management board, highlighted that reaching this figure “is the result of decades of work, knowledge and innovation, as well as our customers’ trust.”
A FACTORY WITH 1,500 WORKERS AND MORE THAN 600 MODELS
The Montañana plant has 1,500 workers and produces around 1.8 million cooktops a year. It is one of the world’s largest factories for integrated induction cooktops and the center from which BSH drives the development of this technology worldwide. Its facilities allow it to manufacture more than 600 models in different sizes and finishes. “Montañana shows that Spanish industry can combine capacity, innovation and quality to compete on a global scale,” Schubert said.
More than 100 robots are involved in production, carrying out precision tasks and reducing physically demanding work, while autonomous vehicles transport materials and components. The factory uses up to 15,000 different components, some made at its own facilities and others sourced from as many as 24 countries. Each cooktop undergoes an individual quality test before leaving the assembly line.
The origins of this activity date back to 1981, when BSH and the University of Zaragoza began working to bring into kitchens a technology used mainly in industry. The first cooktop reached the market in 1990, and this collaboration has led to more than 40 doctoral theses and over 260 undergraduate and master’s projects. Today, Montañana also manufactures models with integrated extractors and matte black glass. “Induction has changed the way we understand the kitchen,” said Alfonso Lorente, BSH’s global head of induction cooktop operations.
