Philips Consumer Lifestyle Drachten

Philips Consumer Lifestyle 

Drachten 

More than 60 years at the forefront of innovation and production!

2 Philips Consumer Lifestyle Drachten

Contents 

Royal Philips Electronics NV 4 

Philips Consumer Lifestyle 7 

Philips Consumer Lifestyle Drachten 8 

- High Impact Innovation Center 10 

- Innovation Domestic Appliances 12 

- Innovation Personal Care 14 

- Shaver production 16 

Are you going to be part of our next success? 18 

Philips Consumer Lifestyle Drachten 

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4 Philips Consumer Lifestyle Drachten 

Royal Philips Electronics NV 

A consumer-centric and marketing-oriented 

organization focused on health and wellbeing 

Philips Consumer Lifestyle Drachten is part of Royal Philips Electronics NV, one of 

the largest companies in the field of health, lifestyle and technology worldwide. As a 

consumer-centric and market-oriented organization, we develop meaningful products 

that improve people’s health and wellbeing. With our products, we want to contribute to 

a healthy and comfortable life for consumers. By health we do not just mean the medical 

aspects of health: staying fit, healthy food and a healthy lifestyle are just as important. 

Sustainability and corporate social responsibility are also high up on our list of priorities.

Our brand promise: 

sense and simplicity 

In a world where complexity increasingly touches every aspect of our daily lives, 

we will lead in bringing sense and simplicity to people by providing innovative 

solutions that are advanced, easy to use, and designed around the needs of all 

our users. 

Sense and simplicity is our brand promise and inspires us in everything we do. It 

inspires us to: 

• Develop meaningful solutions that meet the needs and wishes of consumers. 

• Use the latest insights and technologies to offer a better solution. 

• Create solutions that are user friendly as well as advanced. 

Investment in innovation and design 

Philips belongs to the top 50 of global brands. It has leading 

positions in many markets in the fields of health, consumer 

lifestyle and lighting. Well over 50,000 registered patents, 

36,000 registered trade marketing and 63,000 design 

rights illustrate the company’s innovative nature. To ensure 

that we keep this leading position in the market, we will 

continue to offer people meaningful innovations and will 

continue to make substantial investments in development. 

Sectors 

Philips employs well over 119,000 people worldwide. 

Its head office is located in Amsterdam. With health and 

wellbeing as the company’s spearheads, Philips supplies 

the professional and consumer markets with products 

from three overlapping sectors: Healthcare, Lighting 

and Consumer Lifestyle. Philips Drachten is part of the 

Consumer Lifestyle sector. 


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Sustainability 

Sustainability is a key focus at Philips. We aim to minimize our ecological footprint, and 

this does not only apply to our products, production and purchasing, but also to our 

processes and the communities in which we operate. We use our expertise to simplify 

complex worldwide issues, such as the growing need for greater efficiency in energy 

consumption and healthcare, by developing sustainable solutions for consumers and 

professional users in all markets. 

All Philips products go through an EcoDesign process in which the consequences for the environment 

are considered in terms of energy consumption, hazardous substances, recycling, weight and lifetime. 

Philips’ environment-related procedures are audited by an independent party every year and the results 

are laid down in the annual sustainability report. Philips also stimulates education programs aimed at 

energy saving solutions. The company also strives to provide better healthcare at lower costs all over 

the world, including in such emerging markets as China and India.


Products that bring comfort to people’s lives 

Philips Consumer Lifestyle wants to improve the quality of people’s lives through the 

timely introduction of meaningful innovative lifestyle products. We achieve this, for 

instance, by: 

• Having intensive contacts with end users to gain profound insights into the needs 

and wishes of consumers. 

• Translating these insights into innovations through the collaboration between 

different disciplines. 

• Learning fast and limiting costs by determining the added value in the early stages 

of the development process. 

• Playing a leading role in ‘Open Innovation’ by working closely together with partners 

inside and outside Philips. 


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More than 60 years at the forefront of innovation 

and production 

Philips Drachten is part of the Consumer Lifestyle (CL) sector. With more than 2000 employees 

with 35 different nationalities, Philips CL Drachten is one of CL’s largest development and production 

centers in Europe. We develop many innovative, consumer-oriented products that make life more 

comfortable for the global market. These products include coffeemakers, vacuum cleaners, hot air 

fryers and energy lamps. Philips CL Drachten has also been the development and production center 

for Philips shavers since 1950. Here we manufacture the most sophisticated Philips electric shavers. 

Millions of people across the world use our products every day. 

The reason for this success: our ambition to make high-quality 

products that excite people and that are among the best in their 

class. We fulfill this ambition by collaborating in multidisciplinary 

teams that are consumer-oriented, open-minded towards the 

outside world, constantly looking for improvements, and prepared 

to go the extra mile every day. 


Continuous innovation 

Innovation is the common theme in our business processes. 

We are continuously working on new, innovative products and 

the improvement of our processes. We do this together with 

suppliers and knowledge centers.

Examples of these innovative products are the 

Wake-up Light which enables people to wake up 

more pleasantly, the SENSEO ® coffee machine which 

offers a path-breaking new way of enjoying one cup 

of delicious coffee, the SensoTouch 3D which is our 

best shaver ever, and the airfryer which uses the highly 

innovative ‘Rapid Air Technology’ to prepare delicious 

snacks without oil. 

Our organization 

The organization of Philips CL Drachten 

comprises the following parts: 

• High Impact Innovation Center 

• Innovation Domestic Appliances 

• Innovation Personal Care 

• Shavers production 

• Supporting services, such as IT 

Despite the great diversity of activities, we present ourselves as 

one site. The 1Dracht& program plays an essential role in this: it 

is the major starting point in all our activities. With 1Dracht&, we 

strengthen the synergy between various groups and functions. 

This has big advantages, as close collaboration allows us to make 

optimal use of each other’s knowledge and skills. The 1Dracht& 

program also extends the career opportunities for employees. 

Because so many different activities take place on our site, 

employees can easily make a career step by transferring to another 

job or product group on the same site. This enables them to gain 

valuable experience and to develop themselves. This makes Philips 

CL Drachten a highly dynamic and challenging work environment. 

Warm welcome 

We develop our products in close collaboration with Consumer Marketing and Design. Philips CL Drachten also contributes to sales 

promotion and the opening up of new markets. We do this first of all by producing high-quality products and delivering them very fast. 

We regularly receive managers and representatives from sales organizations and chain stores on our site. Our site is also regularly visited 

by government officials, politicians and journalists. All guests can count on a warm welcome from an enthusiastic team that gives fascinating 

presentations and offers interesting tours. 


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High Impact Innovation Center: 

Development of path-breaking pioneering technologies 

Philips Consumer Lifestyle’s technological know-how is largely concentrated in Drachten, 

for instance in the High Impact Innovation Center (HIIC in short). HIIC is the ‘laboratory for 

future Consumer Lifestyle products’. This innovation center is at the basis of many high-tech 

innovations that have to lead to new, meaningful products for consumers.

HIIC 

Well over one hundred highly educated engineers and 

specialists work intensely on the predevelopment of new 

advanced technological solutions. They are closely involved 

in function and product development. The HIIC experts 

have an academic degree in a relevant subject from a 

research university or a bachelor’s degree from a university 

of applied sciences and are specialized in such disciplines as 

metal forming, plastics, decoration, electronics and applied 

chemistry. They closely follow all major technological 

developments that may be important to Philips CL. This 

keeps Philips CL always at the forefront of innovation. 

Open Innovation 

Using the ‘Open Innovation’ principle as its starting point, 

HIIC collaborates closely with other leading sectors, 

commercial partners and suppliers. Research universities, 

universities of applied sciences, engineering agencies 

and scientific research centers inside and outside the 

Netherlands are also part of the open innovation 

network. As Philips Consumer Lifestyle’s research center, 

HICC is like a spider in a web. Thanks to the exchange of 

knowledge and the close collaboration with partners, 

HIIC is able to come up with trailblazing innovations. 


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Innovation 

Domestic Appliances 

Domestic appliances 

of the future 

How will we vacuum clean our home five years from now? 

What will be the successor of the SENSEO ® coffee machine? 

What innovative and affordable appliance to purify water and 

air will be required, not only in the West but also in the rest 

of the world? 


Innovation Domestic Appliances (IDA) is looking for answers 

to these and many other questions. IDA is an innovative think- 

tank responsible for the function and product development of 

small domestic appliances.

Innovations that IDA came up with include the airfryer 

equipped with the path-breaking ‘Rapid Air Technology’, 

Senseo ® and espresso machines, vacuum cleaners, 

water purifiers, air cleaners, and the Perfect Draft home 

draft beer dispenser. The specialists at IDA also develop 

numerous other household appliances, such as electric 

kettles, toasters, irons, deep fryers. Approximately 120 

employees work on function and product development, 

product research, testing and verification, lifecycle support, 

and quality. 

Strong together 

‘Open Innovation’ is also the guiding principle at IDA. 

The development engineers collaborate intensely with 

internal and external partners, such as HIIC, Innovation 

Centers in Asia, SaraLee (Douwe Egberts), suppliers, and 

scientific institutes. 

Supply 

IDA manages a supply chain with over 20 production and 

supply centers all over the world. The two most important 

production centers are in Poland and China. Supply 

consists of Supply Management, Purchasing, New Product 

Introduction (NPI) and the Model Shop. 


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Innovation Personal Care 

Male Grooming and Vitalight 

Innovation Personal Care develops the new generation of Male Grooming products 

(shavers, trimmers and body groomers) and Vitalight products (energizing light products). 

Each innovation needs to hit the bull’s eye. Innovative products also call for fast execution. 

The time between idea and realization has to be as short as possible to stay ahead of 

the competition. 


Philips Shavers: wet and dry electric shaving 

Every day, millions of men all over the world use an 

electric shaver. There is every chance that they are using 

a Philips shaver. Together with its sister factory in the 

Chinese city of Zhuhai, Philips CL Drachten is one of the 

largest and most modern electric shaver manufacturers 

in the world. All Philips shavers are developed in 

Drachten. All over the world Philips shavers are known 

for their perfect shaving sensation. Philips has been 

manufacturing shavers since 1939, and has been the 

market leader in electric shaving since the 1960s. 

Philips has a market share of more than 50%. We would 

like to maintain this position. That is why we closely 

track consumer wishes and continue our search for 

ever more perfection with ‘cutting edge technology’. 

Our products keep up with time and each new 

generation is a response to changes in consumer wishes. 

We want to exceed these wishes by offering even 

better performance, more comfort, modern designs 

and plenty of options.

Close to the skin 

What do consumers experience? 

With Male Grooming appliances we come very close to the skin of consumers. Safety, 

comfort and performance come first during development. All products are extensively 

tested in our Product Research Center. The effects on skin and hair are checked with 

highly sensitive instruments. We establish how the shaving performance can be further 

improved and how consumers experience our products. The test results help us to 

continuously improve our products and adjust them even better to consumers’ wishes. 

Beard trimmers, hair clippers, and body groomers 

Men increasingly feel a need to express themselves 

through styling. Instead of seeing shaving and 

grooming as a necessary evil, they regard it as a 

form of self-expression. Shaving and styling are 

often combined: for instance by wearing a macho 

stubble beard during the weekend, while sporting a 

closely shaven face during the week. Men feel freer 

and more inclined to express themselves through 

their appearance. Philips wants to provide them 

with the right products to do so! 

Whether they want a smoothly groomed face, 

a clear-cut hairline or total hair removal: the 

grooming products developed in Drachten 

cater to all consumer wishes. Developers 

keep a close eye on consumers and 

their wishes. This enables them to 

create advanced and easy-to-use 

products that comply with the 

latest trends. 

Vitalight - for a comfortable life 

Relaxation, vitality, pain reduction and making life more pleasant: those are 

the key concepts for Vitalight. In Drachten, the department develops and 

tests a wide variety of products, ranging from the Wake-up Light to the 

Energy Light and InfraCare. 

Vitalight’ products bring sunshine into people’s homes. The Wake-up Light 

allows people to wake up naturally by imitating a sunrise. This results in a 

more pleasant waking-up experience. Other well-known top products of 

Vitalight are the InfraCare infrared lamps and the Energy Light, which uses 

light to give more energy during the dark winter months. 


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Shaver production 

World-class production center 

The shaving heads and shavers developed and manufactured in Drachten have been 

successfully distributed and sold all over the world for many years. Our development 

and production processes are characterized by great flexibility, high quality, continuous 

improvement and the lowest possible costs. Our employees work as one close-knit team 

that continuously goes the extra mile to deliver top performance at world-class level. 

Flexible production process 

In 1950, Philips founded a factory for the production 

of electric shavers in Drachten. There have been lots of 

developments since then. Manual work has largely made 

way for mechanized and even fully automated production 

methods. This helped us keep our costs down and stay 

competitive. Big challenges like these are just our thing.

High standards 

A shaver consists of various parts that are nearly all made in house, 

such as shaving heads, trimmers, plastic parts and power supplies. 

Next these parts are combined with the greatest possible precision 

to create complete, high-quality shavers. Our production processes 

have been arranged in a way that ensures the delivery of perfect 

quality. Only shavers that meet the highest standards will be released 

for delivery to our customers. 

Innovative production techniques 

Developing an innovative product is one thing, but mass producing 

such a product is a different story. Philips CL Drachten has the 

expertise to ensure that its production processes run smoothly. 

To achieve this, we use the latest technologies in the fields of 

electrochemical processing, metallurgy, robotized production 

processes, insert molding, and decoration. The production process 

is supported from start to finish by modern logistic management 

technology. 

High speed 

Our production process is very fast. When we receive an 

order from one of our sales organizations or a large chain 

store, we can produce and deliver the requested shavers 

within a few days! 

Simply Philips 

The entire production process is geared towards maximum 

performance and minimum waste of raw materials, time and energy. 

Small intermediate stocks, thorough quality checks and automated 

production systems guarantee high-quality output. Each employee 

contributes to the continuous improvement of our processes. 

Care for people and environment 

During the production of our shavers, we pay close attention to the 

environmental impact of our processes and the working conditions 

for our employees. Our site meets all occupational health, safety and 

environment standards. Safety, health, energy efficiency, recycling and 

waste control are at the top of our list. Water and air are cleaned 

with modern purification plants to prevent pollution and odor 

nuisance. Philips takes its responsibility on this point, and even goes 

a little further than is required by law. Care for people and the 

environment are also part of being a world-class production center! 


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Are you going to be part 

of our next success? 

We offer employees a challenging environment in which they have plenty of opportunities 

to develop themselves and to make use of their talents. We value our people because 

they are the basis for our success. Their initiatives and efforts enable us to exceed 

consumer expectations. 

Thanks to its size and versatility, Philips CL Drachten can offer excellent internal 

training and career opportunities. We also regularly offer research and work 

experience internships. 

18 Philips Consumer Lifestyle Drachten

Interested? 

Would you like to work in a dynamic, 

international high-tech organization and 

contribute to the development, testing and 

production of top products that are sold all 

over the world? Go to www.philips.com/careers 

to apply for a job. 


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Oliemolenstraat 5 

9203 ZN Drachten 

Postbus 20100 

9200 CA Drachten 

Tel. +31 512 59 91 11 

Fax +31 512 53 13 25 

www.philips.com 

communicatie.drachten@philips.com 

July 2011

Philips Consumer Lifestyle Drachten

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