GN says its new state-of-the-art Australian facility is leading the industry and GN globally in manufacturing and logistics, continuing its history of innovation. The headquarters is custom-fitted for current and future needs, and combines operations for GN Hearing, Jabra, and SteelSeries.
When Mr Spencer Harrop visited America in 2023, fate led him to a manufacturing facility whose design inspired the layout for GN’s innovative new Australian production and logistics complex.
Harrop, the Operations Manager at GN Hearing Australia, was visiting with a project manager when they came across an automation facility with fully glassed meeting rooms and a viewing platform on the top floor overlooking the entire open-plan production floor.
Employees and visitors could witness creativity at work below as they planned innovation above.
“We thought, ‘wow, this is cool’ and took that vision to our new Sydney headquarters, taking walls out and creating a design where upstairs rooms can look through the glass and see the entire production,” Harrop says.
The North Ryde building, basically a shell, had a customer-facing design revamp including collaboration spaces featuring stand-up areas, quiet rooms, and large meeting rooms.
“There’s also a working clinic room which enables hearing aid fitting and can be used as a demonstration room, a gaming room to enable demonstration of SteelSeries products, and there will be several Jabra showrooms,” Harrop says.
Mr Paul Jones, GN Hearing Australia Country Manager, adds: “We’re really proud of it and think it’s state of the art for the industry and GN globally. We envision it will help us retain our spot as the market leader in hearing aids in Australia.”
Jones says it was important to create spaces that encourage collaboration and support the company’s growth as well as having a customer-friendly facility so GN can bring audiologist customer tours through the site.
“The new facility is a significant investment and houses 150 employees,” he says. “It includes advanced manufacturing capabilities for custom hearing aids and improved logistics.
“The move will improve service, efficiency and collaboration, grow capacity, and help us continue to innovate.”
The facility brings together different parts of the GN business. Staff, who completed the move in January 2025, previously worked from two facilities in Macquarie Park and North Sydney but are now all together under one roof in operations spaces for GN Hearing, Jabra, and SteelSeries.
“Having all teams under one roof reflects GN’s ‘One GN vision’ which encourages staff to work closer together, find efficiencies, common ground, and opportunities to share research and development,” Jones says.
GN outgrew the Macquarie Park facility where custom hearing aids and ear moulds were manufactured. Jones says the new site enhances the combination of hand moulding of ear moulds and AI technology in manufacturing.
“The benefits of local onshore manufacturing include flexibility in the supply chain and improved service,” Harrop adds. “There’s increased efficiency from having everyone under the same roof.”
The new facility also has an important role in maintaining market leadership and supporting future growth, Jones stresses.
One GN journey
“A big chunk of the facility is the operations but what’s exciting is there’s different parts of our global business,’” he says. “We’re in the medical part of the business GN Hearing, which is hearing aids, but there’s also our audio and video solutions for our enterprise business Jabra, and our premium software-enabled and system integrated gaming gear from SteelSeries.
“Many office spaces around the world will have Jabra audio and video communications equipment, especially headsets.
“They’re moving in, which is exciting because they’ve had their own site in North Sydney for quite a while.
“It becomes a ‘One GN’ site, combining different commercial parts of the business, as well as all operations, production and logistics.”
Jones says the company has been on the ‘One GN’ journey for the past year. “We’ve been doing a lot of things in joint R & D (research and development) for many years between Jabra and GN Hearing, so this is the obvious next step. Outgrowing our previous facility presented this fantastic opportunity to bring the One GN vision together in the Australian market.”
Local manufacturing, quicker orders
Local, onshore manufacturing helps GN keep up its service to customers and enables flexibility with its supply chain, Harrop says.
“It means we can meet customer needs as they arise. Moving into this facility, the big difference is we are all in the one space in the operations area so our flow is much better, and our efficiency will increase,” he says.
“One issue we previously had was that moving an order from the start of the process to getting it out was like a big train through the building, whereas having everybody under the same roof means we can push orders through a lot quicker and more efficiently.
“We’ve also got seven-metre-high ceilings so we can double our racking space which allows us to hold more inventory to serve our customers needs.”
Tight turnaround times in the audiology industry mean expectations for delivery are high. The new set-up means GN can receive a stock order and get it to the customer the next day, Harrop says, adding that some orders that require production take a bit longer.
Market leader in Australia
Jones says high service expectations mean it’s important for GN to maintain and improve service.
“In terms of volume – market share of hearing aids in Australia – we are the number one player in the market,” he says. “It’s a position we hold in Australian and New Zealand markets and we’re very proud of that and want to make sure we solidify and maintain that spot.
“We’ve been successful across various customer segments, and won the Hearing Australia tender a few years back which was a big win and helped us to the number one spot but it’s only part of the story.
“Investment in this new headquarters is important for that reason; it’s an investment for today but also the future because we want to make sure we continue to improve in service and if an audiologist needs something, we can quickly turn it around.”
Some of GN’s Australian employees have been hand moulding hearing aids for up to 40 years. Other hearing aids are produced using AI, taking the impression from the clinic, adding it to a scanner that does sculpting before it goes on a 3D printer and comes out. It can be customised in different colours and shapes.
Continued innovation
Jones says it is also a story of innovation. “Another reason we’re investing in this facility is to ensure we can continue to innovate.
“GN has a proud history of innovation. We’ve been around for 155 years and to survive all those downturns in the global economy and world wars, we had to be innovative,” he says.
“We were the first in the hearing aid space to have an open ear design in 2003 which is now the industry norm, and to bring out Made for iPhone (MFi) technology in 2014 which our competitors now embrace.”
GN also led the way with impression scanners in clinics and the rollout of AI technology in production, he says. “We were also first to use 2.4 gigahertz technology to give direct streaming capability between hearing aids and other devices such as televisions or phones, now also an industry norm.
“We want to do the same in the production space, for example, we’ve been working on how AI can make products faster and better, and we’re rolling out impression scanners in clinics all around Australia so practitioners can take digital impressions themselves and send them to us electronically,” Jones says.
“It’s important to continue to innovate and improve service as we grow, and to deliver on promises to clinicians, assisted by our significant investment in the new facility.”
Harrop and junior project manager Mr Ryan Bresler, who Harrop says did an outstanding job, spent two years looking at sites before they found one that ticked all boxes in allowing commercial and operations to collaborate and the different divisions to come together.
A key advantage is not waiting for products to come from overseas, Harrop adds.
“People like to support locally made products, so it’s important to have a production facility and logistics site in Australia,” he says.
GN’s employees were another reason for the move, he adds. “It’s important our people have a workspace they want to come to, to say they’re proud to work for GN and understand the impact they have on people’s lives.” A gaming room for breaks and a large lunchroom also enable everyone to come together, further reinforcing the ‘One GN’ philosophy.
