HIMA Group, a global leader in safety-related automation solutions, has further strengthened its presence in China with the relocation to its new Shanghai office. The facility was officially inaugurated on Dec. 5 during a special ceremony followed by a Safety Symposium attended by customers, partners and government representatives.
The opening marks a significant step in HIMA’s strategic expansion, underscoring the company’s dedication to supporting China’s fast-growing industries with functional safety solutions.
A strong legacy and a stronger future
“We attach great importance to good cooperation and long-term partnership. We can look back on more than 23 years of successful development of the HIMA Group in China and we feel deeply connected to our customers and partners in China,” explained Steffen Philipp, Managing Partner of HIMA Group.
Today, HIMA employs 80 highly qualified team members across China, working in close collaboration with global HIMA experts.
A New Hub for Innovation and Customer Collaboration
The new Shanghai workspace provides a modern hub for customer engagement, technical collaboration and innovation-driven projects across China. Its new Customer Solutions Center supports a broader range of trainings and testing needs, while the new multi-functional meeting area enhances professional communication with customers. The upgraded office environment also improves employee comfort and efficiency, fostering greater creativity and productivity. “This new office is more than just a space—it’s a statement of how vital the Chinese market is to us,” said Dr. Michael Löbig, CFO of HIMA Group. The new Shanghai workspace provides a modern hub for customer engagement, technical collaboration and innovation-driven projects across China.
“Our new office is a place in China, for China—and a hub from which excellence from China reaches the world,” noted Yao Zhou, GM China.
Driving innovation, sustainability and digital transformation
China remains the world’s largest chemical producer, and HIMA plays a significant role in supporting safer and more secure operations.
Opening the Safety Symposium, Jörg de la Motte, CEO of HIMA Group emphasized China’s importance for HIMA: “China remains one of our most important regions, and we are proud that our solutions help make plants safer while creating added value through the digitalization of functional safety.”
More than 100 participants joined the celebrations and symposium, which featured a symbolic joint paper-plane takeoff to mark the launch of new ideas and partnerships. The choice of an aircraft—recognized as the safest mode of travel—underscores HIMA’s strong commitment to safety. At the same time, the concept of flying toward the ‘Cloud’ reflects the event’s central theme and aligns seamlessly with the symposium’s motto: “Smart Solutions for the Digitalized Process Industry.”
External speakers from China Huanqiu, Sino-German intelligent manufacturing standardization Council and BASF SIS expert shared their perspectives and practice with HIMA’s digitalization solutions. The keynote speech by HIMA experts elaborates on the company’s latest innovations and industry-leading best practices, incorporating cyber security, streamlined engineering, Advanced Physical Layer (APL) and HIMA Smart Solutions.
In line with HIMA’s sustainability strategy, the materials used for the event, are green, environmentally friendly and recyclable. At six booths HIMA showcased cutting-edge technologies in functional safety, including Digital Lifecycle Management, APL, SafeHMI, Digital Engineering, Cybersecurity, Turbine Machinery Control (TMC Solution) and HIPPS.
The relocation follows another recent milestone: the opening of the HIMA Zhanjiang Service Center in Guangdong province in 2024, supporting customers in southeast China, including the BASF Verbund site.
Building on the strong foundation it has established in China, HIMA will further strengthen its commitment to the Chinese market by investing additional resources in fostering local innovation, accelerating the digital transformation of its operations and advancing sustainable technologies. These efforts support both China’s priorities and the company’s global Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance objectives.
Source: automation.com
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