FDBusiness.com

Nestlé has marked the official opening of a new System Technology Centre (STC) in Switzerland that brings together on one site the expertise used to combine products, capsules and machines such as those used in its Nespresso and Nescafé Dolce Gusto beverage systems.

More than 120 experts from 25 countries specialised in fields including industrial design, machine technology, packaging, engineering, micro-electronics and robotics are now working at the centre in the Swiss town of Orbe, leading Nestlé’s efforts to design and develop integrated products, systems and services.

Werner Bauer, chief technology officer at Nestle.

“One of our biggest opportunities for growth lies in innovation,” says Nestlé chief executive Paul Bulcke. “We have led the way in beverage systems for more than 25 years thanks to our strong research and development capabilities, and our expertise in machine engineering.”

“In 1982 we began to combine our coffee know-how with our expertise in capsule and machine technology to develop the Nespresso system, an innovation that revolutionised the single-serve coffee market,” says Werner Bauer, chief technology officer at Nestle. “We went on to develop the hot and cold multi-beverage system Nestcafe Dole Gusto and many other innovations including Nescafe Barista, the only in-home single-serve coffee system of its kind using soluble coffee.”

The premium Nescafe Milano Lounge system is the latest innovation from the STC. The system offers a wide range of hot and cold beverages including cappuccino, latte or gourmet hot chocolate. Consumers cam use its interactive colour tough screen to choose either skimmed or semi-skimmed milk, select the strength of their coffee and opt for different cup sizes.