Latest news with #NielsChristiansen
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Lego Group opens new U.S. headquarters in Boston
Boston's business community just got a little more colorful, as the city welcomed toymaker Lego Group as its newest commercial resident. The toy company officially opened its new U.S. headquarters Thursday at 1001 Boylston St. The offices, which span six floors and 157,000 square feet of the Back Bay office building, will eventually be home to more than 800 employees. 'Boston is a key city for playing and opportunity, in sports, in digital or in the arts, and it's also an incredible center for learning, with some of the world's finest universities here,' CEO Niels Christiansen said. 'We know that by being in Boston, we are able to tap into a global talent pool that will help us develop and grow our business further.' Lego Group announced in 2023 that it would be closing its previous headquarters in Enfield, Connecticut, where it had been for 50 years. Some employees have already moved to or been hired in Boston, and the rest will have the opportunity to transfer over the next year. Read more: 50 years after arriving in Enfield, Lego's future clicks together elsewhere Gov. Maura Healey touted the company's arrival in Massachusetts as an example of the state's economic competitiveness. 'Lego is the standard for creative play and for innovation,' she said. 'At a time when we're concerned about devices and the impact of devices on our young people, Lego sets this incredible opportunity to offer our children gifts of imagination and also agency that makes it a perfect fit for Massachusetts, because we are the top-ranked state in America for education and innovation.' At Thursday's event, company leaders announced that over the next two years, Lego Group would contribute $5 million to provide access to play for children in Boston. This will include a partnership with the Boston Public Library to fund learning experiences for children up to age 13, among other programs. A visitor to the new Lego office wouldn't have any trouble recognizing where they were. Offices and common spaces are decorated with models built from Lego bricks. Nearly every room is equipped with a bin full of bricks that can be snapped onto the walls during meetings. Even surfaces not covered with Legos are reminiscent of the iconic toys: lighting, furniture and other design elements are circular and arranged to mimic Lego's patented 'stud and tube' design. Office amenities include flexible workspaces, parents' rooms and wellness areas, a cafe, gym access and panoramic views of the city. In the office lobby, a prominent series of models references Boston Common's 'Make Way for Ducklings' statue. However, the first duck in the line is not the expected mother mallard, but a wooden toy that was one of the first created by the company when it was founded in Denmark more than 90 years ago. 'Our founder's son hoped to achieve time and cost savings by applying only two coats of varnish to the ducks when the standard was three coats. His father found out and insisted the ducks be retrieved for a third coat of varnish,' Chief Commercial Officer Colette Burke said. 'Our 31,000 employees across the globe know this story and recognize the duck as a symbol of our commitment to quality.' Lego Group employs about 3,500 people in the United States, including at 150 Lego stores across the country. The company plans to open a new factory and regional distribution center in Virginia in 2027, which is expected to employ 2,000 people. Boston Puerto Rican restaurant opens second location in Worcester Over 40 pairs of sunglasses worth over $19K stolen from Boston store Boston Red Sox prospect goes 5-for-5 with homer, 5 RBIs; Marcelo Mayer stays hot BU center with over 1,600 brains gets $15M federal grant to detect disease Boston City Councilors renew calls for Fernandes Anderson to resign Read the original article on MassLive. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
11-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Lego opens groundbreaking $1 billion factory with incredible ambitions: 'Sometimes it takes a big company ... to take those risks'
Lego opened a remarkable $1 billion factory in Vietnam designed to make beloved toy bricks without adding carbon pollution, reported The Associated Press. The new facility near Ho Chi Minh City will run on clean energy by early 2026, making it Vietnam's first factory to reach this environmental goal. The impressive operation covers an area equal to 62 soccer fields and uses 12,400 solar panels with a battery storage system that will supply most of the factory's electricity needs. This development helps both toy makers and eco-minded parents. Lego is working to cut pollution by 37% by 2032 and reach net zero by 2050. The factory already uses paper bags instead of single-use plastic for packaging and has planted twice as many trees as were removed during construction. The Vietnam location also makes strategic business sense for the Danish toy maker. By placing factories in regions they supply, Lego can avoid tariffs and better serve growing markets in Southeast Asia. The company will open a distribution center in Vietnam's southern Dong Nai province to help serve Australia and other Asian countries. Inside the factory, highly advanced robots make colorful bricks with incredible precision: to a 10th of a hair's width. The facility will employ thousands of skilled workers trained at Lego's factory in eastern China to operate these sophisticated machines. Vietnam stands to gain from this project as well. The country aims to reach net-zero pollution by 2050 and hopes this factory will set an example for more green manufacturing. A new 2024 rule allows big foreign companies to buy clean energy directly from solar and wind power producers, helping Lego meet its clean energy goals. Should the government be paying us to upgrade our homes? Definitely Depends on how much it costs Depends on what it's for No way Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. "We just want to make sure that the planet that the children inherit when they grow up needs to be a planet that is still there. That is functional," Lego CEO Niels Christiansen told the AP. Mimi Vu, founder of the consultancy Raise Partners in Ho Chi Minh City, explained that the factory shows how large, energy-heavy factories can be sustainable yet remain profitable. "Sometimes it takes a big company, like Lego, to take those risks. To show that we can do it … and we can be profitable," she said. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Nikkei Asia
27-04-2025
- Business
- Nikkei Asia
Lego goes local with Vietnam and US plants to curb tariff risks
HANOI -- Lego Group's second Asian production center has opened in Vietnam amid mounting trade tensions, underscoring the Danish toy maker's growing emphasis on local manufacturing that could mitigate the risks posed by U.S. tariffs. During a visit to the new facility in Binh Duong province for its April 9 opening, Lego CEO Niels Christiansen said that "building a factory here was a very good choice," adding that point had been confirmed on "several occasions" over the past three years.
The Guardian
11-04-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
Lego drops diversity terms from its annual sustainability report
Lego has cut diversity terminology from its annual sustainability report despite trumpeting the recent addition of 'diverse' characters to make its toys more 'inclusive'. Most recently the world's biggest toymaker introduced sets featuring characters with sunflower lanyards, which are worn to indicate a hidden disability. At the time its chief diversity and inclusion officer, Lauren von Stackelberg, said that the company was 'embedding diversity and inclusion in everything we do'. As part of this mission, Lego has added characters of different skin tones and cultures, as well as physical and non-visible disabilities to its playsets. Figures with limb differences, Down's syndrome, anxiety and vitiligo have all been warmly received by children. However, despite these efforts, Lego's 2024 sustainability statement contains no mention of terms such as 'diversity', 'LGBTQ+' and 'people of colour' all of which appeared in 2023. The previous document also mentioned 'diversity and inclusion' in three places, including in the opening remarks by chief executive Niels Christiansen, but the phrase is absent from the latest release. The 2024 report does discuss gender breakdown at director level, and outlines a target split for 2025 of 57% male/43% female (building on 2024 levels of 57.9%/41.9%). But for the first time it also makes a point of saying 'appointments are made on merit', echoing language used by the US government. The shift in tone from the Danish company is seemingly the latest example of the Trump administration's crackdown on diversity initiatives having an effect in Europe. Several companies across the EU have reportedly received letters from US representatives telling them that the rollback applies to firms around the world looking to do business with the States. Asked about the altered language, Lego insisted that it remained fully committed to its diversity and inclusion initiatives. The diversity page on the Lego Group's website is also still live. A Lego spokesperson said: 'Every year we review and adapt our reporting to ensure it complies with latest requirements and reflects our plans and results. The 2024 sustainability statement does not represent a change in our ongoing approach to diversity and inclusion.' Louise Eldridge, head of good work at campaign group ShareAction said that removing references to diversity and inclusion from company reports sends a 'concerning signal to investors'. Sign up to This is Europe The most pressing stories and debates for Europeans – from identity to economics to the environment after newsletter promotion She aded: 'Removing unfair barriers that prevent disadvantaged groups from competing on a level playing field is a good thing for workers and for businesses. 'At this critical juncture, companies must make it clear to investors and their customers that they remain committed to tackling unfairness and inequity in the workplace. Now is not the time to step back.'
Associated Press
09-04-2025
- Automotive
- Associated Press
Lego says its billion-dollar factory in Vietnam will make toys without pumping out harmful emissions
BINH DUONG, Vietnam (AP) — Lego opened a $1 billion factory in Vietnam on Wednesday that it says will make toys without adding planet-warming gas to the atmosphere by relying entirely on clean energy. The factory in the industrial area of Binh Duong, close to Ho Chi Minh City, is the first in Vietnam that aims to run entirely on clean energy. Lego says it will do that by early 2026. It's the Danish company's sixth worldwide and its second in Asia. It will use high-tech equipment to produce colorful Lego bricks for Southeast Asia's growing markets. 'We just want to make sure that the planet that the children inherit when they grow up needs to be a planet that is still there. That is functional,' Lego CEO Niels Christiansen told The Associated Press. The factory is an important factor in Lego's quest to stop adding greenhouse gases by 2050. It has a shorter-term target of reducing emissions by 37% by 2032. The privately held group makes its bricks out of oil-based plastic and says it has invested more than $1.2 billion in a search for more sustainable alternatives. But those efforts have not always been successful. Fast-industrializing Vietnam also aims to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, so it needs more of its factories to use clean energy. The country hopes the plant's 12,400 solar panels and energy storage system will help set a precedent for more sustainable manufacturing. Locating the Lego factories in regions they supply has also helped insulate them from the tariffs ordered by U.S. President Donald Trump, Christiansen said. 'Right now, I am probably more observant of what does this mean to growth in the world? Do we see consumer sentiment changing in parts of the world or not, and what would that potentially mean?' he said. The blocks are made from differently colored plastic grains that are melted at high temperatures and then fed into metal molds. The highly-automated factory uses robots for making the bricks to a tenth of a hair's width precision and then packaging them. It eventually will employ thousands of mostly skilled workers to operate these machines. Some of them have already begun work after being trained in in Lego's factory in eastern China. Manufacturing makes up a fifth of Vietnam's GDP and consumes half the energy it uses. There are plans to phase out its coal power plants by 2040. The Lego factory, which spans 62 soccer fields, sets the 'blueprint' for making large, power-guzzling factories sustainable while remaining profitable, said Mimi Vu, a founder of the consultancy Raise Partners in Ho Chi Minh City. 'Sometimes it takes a big company, like Lego, to take those risks. To show that we can do it … And we can be profitable,' she said. The factory will benefit from a new 2024 rule known as a direct power purchase agreement or DPPA, which allows big foreign companies to buy clean energy directly from solar and wind power producers and to meet their clean energy requirements. The factory will be linked to an adjacent energy center where electricity can be stored in large batteries. 'So even if the sun is only shining during the day, we store the energy and can use it all over. That will cover by far the majority of the consumption of the factory,' added Christiansen, The remaining 10%-20% of the factory's energy needs will be met through agreements with other clean energy producers. 'Lego and Vietnam, we are having the same aspirations. We both want to be green, to play our part in the climate. And I think this with the solar and battery and DPPA, it is showcasing that it can be done,' Jesper Hassellund Mikkelsen, Senior Vice President Asia Operations at the LEGO Group told The AP. The company will also open a distribution center in Vietnam's southern Dong Nai province to help serve markets in Australia and other Asian countries where it sees an opportunity for growth. The five buildings in the factory meet high energy efficiency standards. Lego also has planted 50,000 trees – twice the number of the trees it cut to clear land for the factory. It's the first Lego factory to replace single-use plastic bags with paper bags for packaging. Lego's founder, Ole Kirk Kristiansen, started the company as a wooden toy maker before patenting the iconic plastic bricks in 1958. It is still is seeking a way to make its plastic bricks more environmentally friendly. Christiansen said Lego bricks last decades and could be reused, though the ultimately ambition is to make them out of more renewable materials. He said that a third of the materials used in Lego bricks made last year were from renewable and recycled sources. But that's more expensive than plastic made out of fossil fuels. 'It's not inexpensive at this point in time, but we believe if we ... lean into that, we help create a supply chain for the type of plastic materials that are not based on fossil fuel,' he said.
