09.09.15
Damman, Saudi Arabia
ww.sgn.com.sa
2015 Nonwovens Sales: $125 million (estimated)
Key Personnel
Haitham Alhudhaif, president. Executive Management Team: Nigel Gautry, marketing and sales; Asem Jameel AsSilkhi, chief financial officer; David Ellenz, vice president of operations
Plants
Dammam, Rabigh, KSA. Antwerp, Belgium (distribution center)
ISO Certification
ISO9001:2008
Processes
Spunmelt; SSS, SMMS, SSMMS. Medical treatment line.
Major Markets
Hygiene—baby care, adult incontinence, feminine hygiene; Medical gowns, scrubs, sterilization wraps; Agriculture—crop covers and mulching fabrics: Industrial—furniture, bedding and filtration
New to the report this year is Saudi German Nonwovens Co., a Saudi Arabian maker of spunmelt and spunbond nonwovens mainly for hygiene and other applications. Coming in at No. 36 this year with estimated sales of $125 million, SGN is celebrating 20 years of operations in 2016. The company started out in 1996 as a joint venture with BBA Coravin and became a stand-alone company led by the industrial partners of Al Raji and Zamil, in 2008 when BBA sold its stake in the company.
“Saudi Arabia is an excellent location for nonwovens manufacturing,” director of marketing and sales Nigel Gautry says. “Saudi is the second largest oil producing country in the world, 10 million barrels per day, thus Saudi has ample polypropylene supplies, low cost of electricity, a monetary system that attracts highly skilled individuals from across the globe.”
SGN currently operates two plants in Saudi Arabia—one in Damman and the other in Rabigh. The newer of the two sites, Rabigh, was added in 2011, to provide SGN with better access to the Suez Canal and position it among the main trade routes from China to Europe.
“This investment has fueled our success in Europe by servicing the EU distribution center in Antwerp, Belgium—basically we have added one machine to Europe without leaving the shores of Saudi Arabia,” Gautry says.
The distribution center in Antwerp allows SGN to ensure that its European customers are serviced as per a local manufacturer, providing faster and more efficient service. With many of the world’s largest consumer companies among its customers, SGN mainly sells its materials outside of Saudi Arabia and attributes its international success to relationship management.
“SGN has grown via carefully created and managed partnerships with strategic customers,” Gautry says. “Our customers grow based on value and we intend to grow with them by providing the bespoke value they require.”
The new site in Ribigh sits on 70,000 square meters of land which gives it enough space for four or five manufacturing lines. While the company is now solely focused on the spunmelt market, Gautry says that future investments will respond to the market demands for all nonwoven materials.
In terms of technology, recent developments have led to the introduction of UltraSoft and UltraSoft-plus for the hygiene industry, and the company plans to introduce a range of apparel, draping and wrapping solutions for the medical fabrics market before the end of 2016. Developments like this are expected to contribute to rapid growth for SGN in these markets, according to executives.
ww.sgn.com.sa
2015 Nonwovens Sales: $125 million (estimated)
Key Personnel
Haitham Alhudhaif, president. Executive Management Team: Nigel Gautry, marketing and sales; Asem Jameel AsSilkhi, chief financial officer; David Ellenz, vice president of operations
Plants
Dammam, Rabigh, KSA. Antwerp, Belgium (distribution center)
ISO Certification
ISO9001:2008
Processes
Spunmelt; SSS, SMMS, SSMMS. Medical treatment line.
Major Markets
Hygiene—baby care, adult incontinence, feminine hygiene; Medical gowns, scrubs, sterilization wraps; Agriculture—crop covers and mulching fabrics: Industrial—furniture, bedding and filtration
New to the report this year is Saudi German Nonwovens Co., a Saudi Arabian maker of spunmelt and spunbond nonwovens mainly for hygiene and other applications. Coming in at No. 36 this year with estimated sales of $125 million, SGN is celebrating 20 years of operations in 2016. The company started out in 1996 as a joint venture with BBA Coravin and became a stand-alone company led by the industrial partners of Al Raji and Zamil, in 2008 when BBA sold its stake in the company.
“Saudi Arabia is an excellent location for nonwovens manufacturing,” director of marketing and sales Nigel Gautry says. “Saudi is the second largest oil producing country in the world, 10 million barrels per day, thus Saudi has ample polypropylene supplies, low cost of electricity, a monetary system that attracts highly skilled individuals from across the globe.”
SGN currently operates two plants in Saudi Arabia—one in Damman and the other in Rabigh. The newer of the two sites, Rabigh, was added in 2011, to provide SGN with better access to the Suez Canal and position it among the main trade routes from China to Europe.
“This investment has fueled our success in Europe by servicing the EU distribution center in Antwerp, Belgium—basically we have added one machine to Europe without leaving the shores of Saudi Arabia,” Gautry says.
The distribution center in Antwerp allows SGN to ensure that its European customers are serviced as per a local manufacturer, providing faster and more efficient service. With many of the world’s largest consumer companies among its customers, SGN mainly sells its materials outside of Saudi Arabia and attributes its international success to relationship management.
“SGN has grown via carefully created and managed partnerships with strategic customers,” Gautry says. “Our customers grow based on value and we intend to grow with them by providing the bespoke value they require.”
The new site in Ribigh sits on 70,000 square meters of land which gives it enough space for four or five manufacturing lines. While the company is now solely focused on the spunmelt market, Gautry says that future investments will respond to the market demands for all nonwoven materials.
In terms of technology, recent developments have led to the introduction of UltraSoft and UltraSoft-plus for the hygiene industry, and the company plans to introduce a range of apparel, draping and wrapping solutions for the medical fabrics market before the end of 2016. Developments like this are expected to contribute to rapid growth for SGN in these markets, according to executives.