IRVINE, CA — Navien, Inc. has opened a new Innovation Center & Training Academy in Irvine, California, combining product development, engineering, testing, quality support and hands-on training at one location. The facility is designed to strengthen the company’s connection to the North American market and the contractors, distributors and other industry partners who work with its products.

The grand opening brought together Navien representatives, contractors, distributors, customers, industry partners and company leadership from North America and the company’s global headquarters in Korea. The opening marks another investment in Navien’s North American operations and its focus on technology and innovation.

Innovation Center Brings Engineering Closer to the Field

The Innovation Center will serve as a hub for North American product development, engineering, testing and quality response. It provides a local environment for evaluating product performance under North American market and field conditions while connecting the regional organization more closely with Navien’s research and development capabilities in Korea.

Activities at the facility will include product performance evaluation, field testing, engineering analysis of customer and field quality issues, product and component improvements, product certification and compliance, and evaluation of technologies and concepts for the North American market.

“The Innovation Center & Training Academy represents much more than an expansion of our facilities,” said TH Kim, CEO at Navien, Inc. “It is a long-term investment in North America and in the people who help us understand the market, deliver our products and serve customers every day. By bringing innovation, engineering, technical education and our partners together under one roof, we can create a stronger connection between what the market needs and what we develop for the future.”

By locating these capabilities closer to customers and product users, Navien aims to incorporate customer feedback, field data, certification requirements and market trends more quickly into product development and improvement.

“North America is a diverse and demanding market, and understanding the needs of our customers requires us to be close to the field,” said Darren Sheehan, COO at Navien, Inc. “The Innovation Center gives us a dedicated environment to listen, test, learn and collaborate, while creating a stronger bridge between our North American organization and our global technology resources.”

The facility will also support collaboration with industry partners, utilities, academic institutions and research organizations to help identify emerging needs and explore opportunities for the North American market.

Expanded Training Academy Combines Classroom and Hands-On Learning

A key feature of the Irvine facility is the integration of the Innovation Center with the Training Academy. The Innovation Center focuses on developing and improving technologies and solutions, while the Training Academy translates those innovations into practical knowledge and field skills.

Compared with Navien’s existing Irvine training facility, the new academy provides significantly more training space and a stronger hands-on learning environment. Dedicated classrooms and hands-on labs allow participants to combine classroom instruction with product demonstrations, installation practice, inspection, diagnostics and troubleshooting exercises.

“Innovation is not complete when a product leaves the engineering lab,” said Kim. “The professionals who install, service and support our products need to understand that technology and know how to apply it in the real world. The Training Academy gives us the opportunity to build those skills while creating a direct feedback loop from the field back into our innovation and product-development efforts.”

The shared location is intended to create an ongoing exchange between training, field experience and product development. Questions and insights raised during training can inform engineering and quality efforts, while new technologies and product improvements can be incorporated into future training programs.

Strengthening Connections With Global R&D

The Irvine Innovation Center will also serve as a link between Navien’s North American business and its global headquarters in Korea. Closer collaboration among North American teams and global research, engineering and product-development organizations is expected to give market insight and field experience from North America a greater role in future product and technology development.

The grand opening marks a new phase for the Irvine facility and Navien’s North American business, focused on bringing market feedback closer to product development, expanding technical education and strengthening connections between the company’s global organization and the professionals it serves.

The new center adds to Navien’s investment in facilities and operations for the North American market. The company recently held a grand opening for its renovated New Jersey Training Academy, which features an improved hands-on experience for plumbing, HVAC and water treatment products, along with two large training classrooms.

For more information about Navien’s products, training programs and solutions, visit navieninc.com.