Karen McIntyre, Editor09.10.08
1. Freudenberg $1.45 billion
2. DuPont $1.35 billion
3. Kimberly-Clark $1.3 billion
4. Ahlstrom $1.28 billion
5. PGI $1.06 billion
6. Fiberweb $948 million
7. Johns Manville $670 million
8. Fibertex $294 million
9. Buckeye $260 million
10. First Quality $250 million
11. Avgol $237 million
12. Companhia Providencia $225 million
12. Hollingsworth & Vose $225 million
14. Concert Industries $212 million
15. TWE Group $211 million
16. Propex $210 million
17. Colbond $195 million
18. Japan Vilene $194 million
19. Vita Nonwovens $190 million
20. Sandler $171 million
21. Asahi Kasei $170 million
22. Pegas $167 million
23. Jacob Holm $160 million
24. Georgia-Pacific $150 million
25. Toyobo $143 million
26. Mitsui $136 million
27. Lydall $135 million
28. Andrew Industries $130 million
29. Western Nonwovens $125 million
30. Toray Saehan $123 million
31. Foss Manufacturing $108 million
32. Suominen $104 million
33. Fitesa $103 million
34. Royal Tencate $102 million
35. Albis $100 million
36. Textilgruppe Hof $98 million
37. Union (Ranking for 2007 should be 28) $133 million
38. Unitika $88 million
39. PCC $87 million
40. Rexcell $86 million
Raw Material Prices, Raw Material Prices, Raw Material Prices
That was the key point on nearly every nonwoven producer’s mind in this year’s Top Company report. How to reduce them, how to pass them on to their customers, how they will trend going forward. With oil prices hitting all-time highs, it’s no surprise that most of the nonwovens executives interviewed cited the price of oil-based raw materials as the number one problem facing their businesses moving forward. Most executives have combatted these price hikes by imposing their own price increases on their customers but these measures have only taken nonwovens producers part of the way when it comes to margin erosion. Other measures have included reduced basis weights, streamlined production and alternative raw materials.
Despite these troubles, the nonwovens industry remains a strong and growing market with nearly every producer reporting sales growth and several announcing expansion plans in a number of technologies. On the spunmelt side, Brazilian producers Fitesa and Companhia Providencia have announced plans to enter North America and additional investment is being planned by Pegas in the Czech Republic and PGI in Mexico. Ahlstrom continues to invest heavily in both wipes and filtration and Denmark’s Fibertex is focusing on the technical side of its business with new lines in Denmark and the Czech Republic. Meanwhile, Fiberweb and Concert Industries are investing in airlaid technology.
In total, this year’s report includes 17 European companies, 14 North American firms, five Japanese producers, two Brazilian manufacturers and an Israeli and a Korean company. Many of these companies are truly global in scope with manufacturing sites located throughout the world.
This year, Nonwovens Industry welcomes several newcomers to its top company report. First Quality Nonwovens, a long-time maker of spunmelt nonwovens, enters the top company report for the first time at number 10 this year. First Quality’s purchase of Covidien’s retail business makes it an integrated producer of spunmelt nonwovens and disposable baby diapers. Also new this year is Fitesa, a Brazilian producer, who appears at number 33.
In addition to the world’s 40 largest producers of nonwovens, this year’s report includes information about several smaller producers of nonwovens that the editors of Nonwovens Industry feel will be extremely important to the nonwovens market moving forward—either in terms of their size or in their technological scope. If you think that your company should be profiled in next year’s Top Company report, please let us know.
Karen Bitz McIntyre Ellen Wuagneux
editor associate editor
karenb@rodpub.com ellenw@rodpub.com