New name for Peterborough white goods maker Whirlpool as business joins Beko Europe

​The Whirlpool name has disappeared from Peterborough as the manufacturer of household appliances begins a new era.

​Whirlpool, which employs more than 1,000 people at its site in Morley Way, where it also operates under brand names such as Indesit, Hotpoint and KitchenAid, has now become part of a new business.

The city-based manufacturer will now be known as Beko Europe after the completion of a deal – first announced in January last year – between its owner US-based Whirlpool Corporation and the Turkey-based household appliances maker Arcelik.

Under the deal, Whirlpool joins Arcelik’s existing Beko business in Europe to become Beko Europe.

Seventy five per cent of the newly formed company is owned by Beko and 25 per cent by Whirlpool Corporation.

Ragıp Balcıoğlu, chief executive of Beko Europe, which has 20,000 employees and a production capacity of about 24 million home appliance products a year across 11 sites, said: “This is the start of Beko Europe’s journey to establish sustainable living in every home in Europe.

"By understanding our customers’ and consumers’ changing needs, we aim to power the European household appliance industry forward to a brighter, more competitive, and eco-friendly landscape."

Whirlpool arrived in Peterborough about nine years ago, when the company acquired the Indesit business.

However, the factory is still better known locally as Hotpoint, which was the name of the business that was established in 1911 until its acquisition in 2008 by the Italian owned Indesit.