By Heather Collins
Carmel-based telecommunications company Telamon is expanding its global reach.
Telamon launched its European location in Skopji, Macedonia, in April. The company expects to have 500 employees at the new office by the end of the year and anticipates anually manufacturing more than 5 million harnesses for passenger safety applications, like seat belts and airbags, and eventually expects to manufacture 25 million harnesses annually after expansion.
Chief Administrative Officer Stephanie Fuhrmann said the expansion to Europe enables the company to decrease lead time, transit time and transportation costs.
“Telamon’s mission is to simplify business by increasing efficiency and streamlining operations for our customers,” Fuhrmann said. “Macedonia accomplishes exactly that in the European market.”
Thanks to an acquisition in 2014, Telamon entered the Passive Safety Wire Harness market. Since entering the market, Telamon has doubled its share of the North American Automotive Passive Safety Market from 10 percent to 20 percent and tripled its number of employees from 400 to 1,200. Its products are used in more than 50 vehicle models worldwide, including BMW, Cadillac and Jeep. Its existing facilities produce 125 million harnesses each year.
“These harnesses transmit data from the car’s electronic control module to those passive safety elements that actually save lives,” Fuhrmann said.
Telamon provides engineering, installation and deployment services for telecommunications networks, including the Indianapolis Convention Center, Bankers Life Fieldhouse and Lucas Oil Stadium.
Telamon was founded by Albert Chen in 1985. Chen began his career in the Pacific Northwest with GTE and was transferred to Westfield. In 1979, he headed GTE Supply and was faced with the demand to lay off more than 200 employees because of economic conditions. Chen quit his job in hopes of protecting at least one person from losing theirs and then started Telamon.
Telamon is now headed by Chen’s children, Stanley Chen, CEO, and Furhmann, who all live in Carmel. Chen continues to serve as chairman of the board.
By September, Telamon expects to reach approximately $750 million in revenue and employee more than 2,000 people worldwide.
For information, visit telamon.com.
