Romanian engineers write software for equipment used by all Saint Gobain’s factories

Keiji Kobayashi, vice-president of Yokogawa Europe, thinks that Eastern Europe could see significant energy and petroleum product refinery investments over the coming period, which could also lead to the growth of the business in Romania, where about 90 engineers are currently working.

The local office of the company was established in 2004, and the 87 engineers are developing software for industrial equipment and machinery. The company's most important client is Saint Gobain, with Yokogawa Romania developing the software for the group's factories worldwide.

"This is not a good time for new businesses, especially in Europe. We see a 1% GDP increase in Europe in 2010, while prospects remain much better for Russia, the United States and especially Asia. We, however, expect our clients to invest in energy and refineries in Eastern Europe," said Kobayashi during his first visit to Romania, one year after taking over the European operations.

More than half of Yokogawa Romania's turnover comes from software supplied to energy and petroleum industry clients, such as Shell, Exxon Mobil, BP, Total and companies with petroleum industry operations in the Middle East.