Pon.Bike bicycle factory in Lithuania will be led by Algimantas Gedvilas

The factory of Pon.Bike, the world's leading bicycle company with the strongest portfolio of quality brands, currently under construction in the Kėdainiai Free Economic Zone (FEZ), already has a Plant Manager – Algimantas Gedvilas with many years of management experience in manufacturing companies.

A. Gedvilas' most important task in the near future is to work with the team being put together to ensure a smooth start of the bicycle factory in the summer 2024.

"Across all markets, we aim to build a strong team of local managers and professionals who will integrate into the overall framework of our organisation and adopt best practices. Lithuania is no exception. This culture of collaboration at Pon.Bike is a proven foundation for successful processes that lead to the best ideas and progress. I am convinced that the experience and leadership of Algimantas Gedvilas will be a significant and strong impulse for the whole team and for the launch of the factory in Lithuania," says Janco van der Heiden, Pon.Bike's Vice President for Operations.

Prior to that, A. Gedvilas worked as Head of Production for almost five years in a healthcare product factory owned by Hollister Incorporated, which has been operating in Kaunas FEZ since 2019. Previously, A. Gedvilas was Head of Production at Audimas and he also has experience in other manufacturing industries.

Other leaders are also needed

Construction work on the state-of-the-art Pon.Bike factory, currently being built in Kėdainiai, is already halfway through. To ensure a smooth launch, the company is now focusing on building its management team and other key positions that will have their role in preparing the factory for starting its production. There are currently around 10 open positions with a total of 30 employees hired by the end of 2023.

Once the management teams are built, hundreds more employees will be intensively recruited and trained next year, with a total of 600 new jobs to be created until production is on full pace.

The Kėdainiai factory will be the eighth Pon.Bike-owned factory in the world and will focus on the fast-growing European market. The three-storey building in Kėdainiai will house bicycle assembly and painting workshops, a warehouse and administrative premises.

At full capacity, it will assemble up to 450,000 bicycles a year – such world-famous brands as Gazelle, Kalkhoff and Focus, as well as electric bicycles, which are considered to be the future of the market.

The bicycle factory in Lithuania will comply with the highest standards of sustainability and clean ],production. The 40,000 sqm building will have an A++ energy performance class and the ],production lines will be powered by a 10,000 sqm solar power plant on the roof of the factory.