Grand Opening in Kongsberg

The Norwegian government's decision to pick the American fighter craft F-35 Joint Strike Fighter to replace the F-16 put an extra dimension to the grand opening of Kongsberg's new facility for the manufacturing of advanced composite aerostructures in Kongsberg.>> The Minister of Defence Anne-Grete Strm-Erichsen, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Trade and Industry yvind Slke and Mayor of Kongsberg Vidar Lande performed the ribboncutting in front of about 100 guests. The new facility will be used to manufacture advanced composite aerostructures for the Joint Strike Fighter.>> "This is a big day for us. The decision to buy the American fighter craft Joint Strike Fighter is positive for the success of this facility, for us as a company, for the region, for many of our Norwegian subcontractors and for the further development of Norwegian technology competence," said Kongsberg's CEO Walter Qvam.>> The Norwegian Minister of Defence, Strm-Erichsen congratulated Kongsberg with the grand opening of the facility and also took the opportunity to congratulate Lockheed Martin as the chosen supplier of the new Norwegian fighter craft.>> "Norway depends on a competent and competitive defence industry. The opening of this facility confirms that the government is serious about strengthening the cooperation with the industry. We believe that Kongsberg has the right environment when it comes to building up national composite competence," said Strm-Erichsen.>> "This is a good example of how the cooperation between the industry and authorities should work", said Deputy Minister yvind Slke. "The build-up of competence within advanced composite materials will create opportunities across Norway.