Fibertex Nonwovens is continuing its strong investment strategy with a $50 million (DKK300 million) investment in new capacity at its plants in the Czech Republic and Turkey. The Danish company announced a similar sized investment at its U.S. operation in South Carolina in March.
“Demand for our nonwovens has increased significantly in recent years. It concerns particularly the more specialized applications and high-performance materials for the healthcare sector, industrial products, specialist acoustic products for the automotive industry, nanofiltration for industrial purposes, etc. Our business development and research activities over the past ten years have afforded us a leading position in both Europe and the USA, and this is the direct reason for the total investment of just over DKK 600 million in capacity expansions,” explains Jørgen Bech Madsen, CEO of Fibertex Nonwovens.
He adds that the coronavirus pandemic has led to an explosive demand for hygiene products, such as disinfectant wipes. Fibertex Nonwovens ability to produce specialised products with unique properties at relatively low costs is increasingly recognized in the market.
The bulk of this investment will be spend on a new spunlace produciton line at its plant in Svitavy in the eastern Czech Republic:
“We’ve got a lean and high-tech production setup with clear focus on innovation, and the new production line is to serve the huge demand for disinfection wipes from the healthcare sector. This demand was rising even before the coronavirus pandemic, but we expect it to increase even further in the coming years. With this new investment, we’ll be able to offer new and sustainable product properties that’ll help meet the demands of the future in this field. At the same time, we’re freeing up capacity at several of our other European plants, allowing us to explore new opportunities within the manufacture of acoustic products for the automotive industry and products for filtration,” Bech Madsen continues.
Fibertex Nonwovens acquired its Turkish operation in 2015 from Ribatek. The plant, located in the city of Cerkezkoy in western Turkey, nearly 100 kilometres northwest of Istanbul, also specializes in spunlacing. Fibertex Nonwovens will expand the capacity on existing lines at the site and add additional lines with finishing and coating capabilities to allow it to manufacture specialised nonwovens products:
“The plant in Turkey complements the production units of our other European and US plants by manufacturing high-tech products. For example, we’re experiencing growing demand for various forms of finishing, which allow us to add entirely unique properties to the products,” says Bech Madsen.
