08.31.21
Weinheim, Germany
www.freudenberg-pm.com
2020 Nonwovens Sales: $2.3 billion (including sales from Freudenberg Performance Materials, Freudenberg Filtration Technologies and Japan Vilene)
Key Personnel
Frank Heislitz, CEO; Thomas Herr, CFO; John McNabb, COO
Plants
Weinheim, Germany; Neuenburg, Germany; Kaiserslautern, Germany; Greetland, U.K.; Swindon, U.K.; Littleborough, Wales, U.K.; Colmar, France; Barcelona, Spain; Nizhiniy, Novgorod, Russia; Sant´ Omero, Italy; Cossato, Italy; Novedrate, Italy; Pisticci, Italy; Suzhou, China; Nantong, China; Chennai, India; Pyungtaek, South Korea; Yang Mei, Taiwan; Tayuan, Taiwan; San Martin/Buenos Aires, Argentina; Durham, NC; Jacarei, Brazil; Cape Town, South Africa; Macon, GA
ISO Status
All locations are ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 certified; locations serving the automotive industry are TS 16469 certified; all sites are OHSAS 18001 certified
Processes
Drylaid staple fiber, wetlaid, spunbond, meltblown, needlepunch, thermal bond, chemical bond, water entanglement
Brands
Comfortemp, Evolon, SoundTex, Vlieseline, Terbond, Texbond
Major Markets
Automotive, apparel, construction, building interiors, energy, medical, hygiene and special applications, shoe and leather goods
As it readjusts its business portfolio to respond to the post-Covid world, Freudenberg Performance Materials continues to focus on investment in key areas, sustainability and providing a truly global business to its customers. In recent months, the company has added a meltblown line in Germany, a staple fiber line in Slovenia, an Enka line in Asia and a new spunbond line in Taiwan.
Additionally, in 2020, the company’s research and development teams worked overtime developing new products using alternative materials for face masks as the global meltblown market—including an existing meltblown line—faced shortages. Efforts in this area included using its Evolon microfilament technology for reusable washable face masks and making adjustments to existing spunbond lines to make face masks with similar filtration efficiency as meltblown.
Also in response to heightened need for face mask material, Freudenberg announced in October 2020 that it would add a new high performance meltblown line in Kaiserslautern, Germany. The line came onstream within nine months during the third quarter of 2021 and continues to serve the need for face masks. Once demand in that area weakens, the line is also well equipped to serve other high performance markets.
“There will be a global overcapacity for meltblown but there will remain long term need for high performance meltblown in the filtration and automotive markets,” says Dr. Frank Heislitz, CEO of Freudenberg Performance Materials.
While many of Freudenberg’s key markets, like automotives and construction, began seeing signs of recovery in late 2020 and into 2021, one of its core markets, apparel, continues to face challenges. Heislitz says he expects the long term impact of Covid to be lasting in apparel.
“Covid has resulted in some long-term fundamental changes that will impact the interlinings market for years to come,” he says. “We were already seeing trends toward more casual dressing and more home offices and Covid-19 has accelerated in this trend.”
In response to these changes, Freudenberg announced a restructuring of its apparel business in January 2021. Once this project is complete, sometime in late 2022, all of Freudenberg’s manufacturing of base materials for interlinings will be located in Weinheim, Germany, while its material finishing and coating operations will be moved to Sant’Omero, Italy. This will require the finishing and coating lines to be moved from Weinhem to Sant’Omero. Additionally, a line—which was decommissioned and disassembled in 2017—will be moved to Italy from San Martin Argentina.
By bundling its apparel-related technologies in competence centers, Freudenberg will help this European business continue to thrive. Existing base material know-how will be developed in Weinheim, and the Sant’Omero site will be expanded to become a competence center for finishing and coating. Customers will enjoy many advantages such as more flexible solutions, faster lead times and swifter delivery. At the same time, they could continue to benefit from the “product originating in Europe” designation.
From a market perspective, Freudenberg continues to focus on other areas of the apparel market like high performance outdoor items and sportswear. Its comfortemp Lyocell padding, which meets all requirements for high performance thermal insulation for sports and outdoor padding is the first fully biodegradable padding made from sustainably produced cellulose.
In 2020, Freudenberg expanded capacity of its comfortemp technology with a new line in Suzhou, China.
In other new product news, in August, Freudenberg launched a range of highly efficient interlinings, tapes and thermal insulation materials for workwear and protective clothing. The materials not only withstand diverse kinds of strain they are exposed to in everyday work and washing procedures, but also offer excellent comfort. The nonwoven and woven interlinings and tapes stand out due to a number of special features, such as increased stability, elasticity, abrasion resistance and wind-blocking properties. Thanks to the sophisticated adhesive technology used by the globally leading manufacturer of technical textiles, some products are especially resistant and durable.
Elsewhere in Asia, Freudenberg completed work on its latest spunlaid investment in Taiwan, the site’s third. This new line is the first to feature Freudenberg’s latest spunlaid technology which enhances filament distribution for increased material uniformity, which in turn provides customers with ease of processing the nonwovens for a variety of applications.
The line also utilizes artificial intelligence technology to detect variances in the material and automatically adjust uniformity as well as a high-grade IR camera to identify small melt defects.
“The expansion of our capabilities underscores our long-term commitment to Asia. We want to continue to support our customers in the automotive and carpet markets with innovative and sustainable solutions that will help them grow,” says Heislitz.
In addition to new, proprietary technology, the production line features enhancements to reduce environmental impacts. All parts used in construction were selected based off their energy efficiency to lessen CO2 emissions during operation. The Taiwan site also invested in a new recycling system to recycle all start-up materials as well as scrap materials during normal operations; the recycling line will help the team in their goal to reach zero-waste operations. The spunlaid line will also run partially on solar energy supplied from panels installed on site early last year.
Freudenberg will now upgrade its existing spunlaid lines globally to feature the latest version of its spinning technology.
Other recent investments include a new staple fiber line in Slovenia at a site acquired from Filc Spa in 2019 and additional capacity for its gas diffusion layer technology which is an indispensable component of fuel cells.
Freudenberg has also been growing through acquisition. Its most recent acquisition was Low & Bonar, a London, U.K.-based nonwovens manufacturer, in March 2020. The addition of Low & Bonar, the maker of Colbond and Enka fabrics, not only expands its manufacturing know-how but also increases its technological capabilities, particularly in spunbond technology.
Low & Bonar has a proprietary two-step spunbond process solution that allows the company to be more flexible and individually tailor products to customer specifications. Freudenberg can also expand on its broad product range. This is particularly true for the current application in the construction, interior build out, home textile and automotive sectors.
“We are also opening new fields for Freudenberg with new applications thanks to Low & Bonar’s complementary technologies,” says Heislitz.
The acquisition of Low & Bonar which was founded in 1903 and headquartered in London means Freudenberg Performance Materials now has 35 production facilities in Asia, Europe and North America and some 5500 employees (previously some 4000).
In terms of product development, Freudenberg continues to develop its Evolon microfilament technology. Evolon RE is manufactured from an average of 70% recycled polyester, which the company makes by recycling post-consumer PET bottles in-house and is available for various applications, including high-tech wiping and technical packaging, in weights currently ranging from 80g/sqm to 300g/sqm. Evolon RE offers the same high and constant quality as all other Evolon textiles. This applies to mechanical and textile properties as well as to filtration, cleaning and protection properties.
The use of recycled materials in the demanding production of Evolon textiles without sacrificing product performance underlines Freudenberg’s technological know-how, as Jean-Francois Kerhault, business segment manager Evolon, explains: “We have more than 20 years of experience with Evolon technology. Our technical teams are real experts in this demanding process, and it is thanks to their knowledge that we were able to overcome the challenge of integrating recycled PET from post-consumer bottles into our products.”
“Sustainability is anchored in our guiding principles,” says Heislitz. “We are one of the biggest polyester bottle recyclers in the EU and we use them in a variety of products.”
In divestment news, in February, Freudenberg completed the sale of its South American hygiene nonwoven business to Fitesa. While Freudenberg was successful in the South American hygiene market since 1985, the hygiene market has shifted from a regional market to a global one. “Fitesa is geared to the global hygiene market. Under this set up, our current regional business can perform better and grow long-term in the new structures,” says Heislitz. “We are very happy to have found a reputable global player in the hygiene business with Fitesa, which has similar values to Freudenberg. This will be a good new home for our staff.”
The sale does not affect Freudenberg Performance Materials’ Brazilian and other South American businesses in apparel, shoe and leather sectors.
www.freudenberg-pm.com
2020 Nonwovens Sales: $2.3 billion (including sales from Freudenberg Performance Materials, Freudenberg Filtration Technologies and Japan Vilene)
Key Personnel
Frank Heislitz, CEO; Thomas Herr, CFO; John McNabb, COO
Plants
Weinheim, Germany; Neuenburg, Germany; Kaiserslautern, Germany; Greetland, U.K.; Swindon, U.K.; Littleborough, Wales, U.K.; Colmar, France; Barcelona, Spain; Nizhiniy, Novgorod, Russia; Sant´ Omero, Italy; Cossato, Italy; Novedrate, Italy; Pisticci, Italy; Suzhou, China; Nantong, China; Chennai, India; Pyungtaek, South Korea; Yang Mei, Taiwan; Tayuan, Taiwan; San Martin/Buenos Aires, Argentina; Durham, NC; Jacarei, Brazil; Cape Town, South Africa; Macon, GA
ISO Status
All locations are ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 certified; locations serving the automotive industry are TS 16469 certified; all sites are OHSAS 18001 certified
Processes
Drylaid staple fiber, wetlaid, spunbond, meltblown, needlepunch, thermal bond, chemical bond, water entanglement
Brands
Comfortemp, Evolon, SoundTex, Vlieseline, Terbond, Texbond
Major Markets
Automotive, apparel, construction, building interiors, energy, medical, hygiene and special applications, shoe and leather goods
As it readjusts its business portfolio to respond to the post-Covid world, Freudenberg Performance Materials continues to focus on investment in key areas, sustainability and providing a truly global business to its customers. In recent months, the company has added a meltblown line in Germany, a staple fiber line in Slovenia, an Enka line in Asia and a new spunbond line in Taiwan.
Additionally, in 2020, the company’s research and development teams worked overtime developing new products using alternative materials for face masks as the global meltblown market—including an existing meltblown line—faced shortages. Efforts in this area included using its Evolon microfilament technology for reusable washable face masks and making adjustments to existing spunbond lines to make face masks with similar filtration efficiency as meltblown.
Also in response to heightened need for face mask material, Freudenberg announced in October 2020 that it would add a new high performance meltblown line in Kaiserslautern, Germany. The line came onstream within nine months during the third quarter of 2021 and continues to serve the need for face masks. Once demand in that area weakens, the line is also well equipped to serve other high performance markets.
“There will be a global overcapacity for meltblown but there will remain long term need for high performance meltblown in the filtration and automotive markets,” says Dr. Frank Heislitz, CEO of Freudenberg Performance Materials.
While many of Freudenberg’s key markets, like automotives and construction, began seeing signs of recovery in late 2020 and into 2021, one of its core markets, apparel, continues to face challenges. Heislitz says he expects the long term impact of Covid to be lasting in apparel.
“Covid has resulted in some long-term fundamental changes that will impact the interlinings market for years to come,” he says. “We were already seeing trends toward more casual dressing and more home offices and Covid-19 has accelerated in this trend.”
In response to these changes, Freudenberg announced a restructuring of its apparel business in January 2021. Once this project is complete, sometime in late 2022, all of Freudenberg’s manufacturing of base materials for interlinings will be located in Weinheim, Germany, while its material finishing and coating operations will be moved to Sant’Omero, Italy. This will require the finishing and coating lines to be moved from Weinhem to Sant’Omero. Additionally, a line—which was decommissioned and disassembled in 2017—will be moved to Italy from San Martin Argentina.
By bundling its apparel-related technologies in competence centers, Freudenberg will help this European business continue to thrive. Existing base material know-how will be developed in Weinheim, and the Sant’Omero site will be expanded to become a competence center for finishing and coating. Customers will enjoy many advantages such as more flexible solutions, faster lead times and swifter delivery. At the same time, they could continue to benefit from the “product originating in Europe” designation.
From a market perspective, Freudenberg continues to focus on other areas of the apparel market like high performance outdoor items and sportswear. Its comfortemp Lyocell padding, which meets all requirements for high performance thermal insulation for sports and outdoor padding is the first fully biodegradable padding made from sustainably produced cellulose.
In 2020, Freudenberg expanded capacity of its comfortemp technology with a new line in Suzhou, China.
In other new product news, in August, Freudenberg launched a range of highly efficient interlinings, tapes and thermal insulation materials for workwear and protective clothing. The materials not only withstand diverse kinds of strain they are exposed to in everyday work and washing procedures, but also offer excellent comfort. The nonwoven and woven interlinings and tapes stand out due to a number of special features, such as increased stability, elasticity, abrasion resistance and wind-blocking properties. Thanks to the sophisticated adhesive technology used by the globally leading manufacturer of technical textiles, some products are especially resistant and durable.
Elsewhere in Asia, Freudenberg completed work on its latest spunlaid investment in Taiwan, the site’s third. This new line is the first to feature Freudenberg’s latest spunlaid technology which enhances filament distribution for increased material uniformity, which in turn provides customers with ease of processing the nonwovens for a variety of applications.
The line also utilizes artificial intelligence technology to detect variances in the material and automatically adjust uniformity as well as a high-grade IR camera to identify small melt defects.
“The expansion of our capabilities underscores our long-term commitment to Asia. We want to continue to support our customers in the automotive and carpet markets with innovative and sustainable solutions that will help them grow,” says Heislitz.
In addition to new, proprietary technology, the production line features enhancements to reduce environmental impacts. All parts used in construction were selected based off their energy efficiency to lessen CO2 emissions during operation. The Taiwan site also invested in a new recycling system to recycle all start-up materials as well as scrap materials during normal operations; the recycling line will help the team in their goal to reach zero-waste operations. The spunlaid line will also run partially on solar energy supplied from panels installed on site early last year.
Freudenberg will now upgrade its existing spunlaid lines globally to feature the latest version of its spinning technology.
Other recent investments include a new staple fiber line in Slovenia at a site acquired from Filc Spa in 2019 and additional capacity for its gas diffusion layer technology which is an indispensable component of fuel cells.
Freudenberg has also been growing through acquisition. Its most recent acquisition was Low & Bonar, a London, U.K.-based nonwovens manufacturer, in March 2020. The addition of Low & Bonar, the maker of Colbond and Enka fabrics, not only expands its manufacturing know-how but also increases its technological capabilities, particularly in spunbond technology.
Low & Bonar has a proprietary two-step spunbond process solution that allows the company to be more flexible and individually tailor products to customer specifications. Freudenberg can also expand on its broad product range. This is particularly true for the current application in the construction, interior build out, home textile and automotive sectors.
“We are also opening new fields for Freudenberg with new applications thanks to Low & Bonar’s complementary technologies,” says Heislitz.
The acquisition of Low & Bonar which was founded in 1903 and headquartered in London means Freudenberg Performance Materials now has 35 production facilities in Asia, Europe and North America and some 5500 employees (previously some 4000).
In terms of product development, Freudenberg continues to develop its Evolon microfilament technology. Evolon RE is manufactured from an average of 70% recycled polyester, which the company makes by recycling post-consumer PET bottles in-house and is available for various applications, including high-tech wiping and technical packaging, in weights currently ranging from 80g/sqm to 300g/sqm. Evolon RE offers the same high and constant quality as all other Evolon textiles. This applies to mechanical and textile properties as well as to filtration, cleaning and protection properties.
The use of recycled materials in the demanding production of Evolon textiles without sacrificing product performance underlines Freudenberg’s technological know-how, as Jean-Francois Kerhault, business segment manager Evolon, explains: “We have more than 20 years of experience with Evolon technology. Our technical teams are real experts in this demanding process, and it is thanks to their knowledge that we were able to overcome the challenge of integrating recycled PET from post-consumer bottles into our products.”
“Sustainability is anchored in our guiding principles,” says Heislitz. “We are one of the biggest polyester bottle recyclers in the EU and we use them in a variety of products.”
In divestment news, in February, Freudenberg completed the sale of its South American hygiene nonwoven business to Fitesa. While Freudenberg was successful in the South American hygiene market since 1985, the hygiene market has shifted from a regional market to a global one. “Fitesa is geared to the global hygiene market. Under this set up, our current regional business can perform better and grow long-term in the new structures,” says Heislitz. “We are very happy to have found a reputable global player in the hygiene business with Fitesa, which has similar values to Freudenberg. This will be a good new home for our staff.”
The sale does not affect Freudenberg Performance Materials’ Brazilian and other South American businesses in apparel, shoe and leather sectors.
