NEWS
MOVINGON
Relocations and expansions across Europe
Groupe GM announces Investment of €14.5M to extend multi-million Lyon Minakem’s production capacity in France plant extension M G inakem, the contract manufacturing division of Minafin, specialising in custom development and manufacturing of building blocks, intermediates and Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) for the pharmaceutical industry, has initiated the extension of its manufacturing capacity at its Dunkirk site in France. The €14.5M ($18M) investment from parent company Minafin is the first of this magnitude. It will enable the company to set up a new production line, increasing production capacity by 28m3. In parallel, existing production assets are being upgraded in order to increase flexibility. This will free up an additional 26m3 production volume. In total, the production volume at the Dunkirk site will increase by 54m3 to a total capacity of 148m3. “We are pleased to announce the initial phase of an additional production line at our Dunkirk site. Thanks to this major investment by the Minafin Group, we are excited by the growth potential for Minakem,” said Thierry van Nieuwenhove, CEO of Minakem. “It fits into our ‘Jump 21’ strategy and follows Minafin’s objective to increase overall production capacity at Minakem’s sites. “ Visit: www.minakem.be
WACKER opens a new plant for functional silicone fluids in India
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acker Metroark Chemicals Pvt. Ltd. is expanding its existing silicone production at its Amtala site near Kolkata with a new hydrosilylation plant for manufacturing functional silicone fluids. The expansion is WACKER’s response to growing regional demand for speciality silicones for use in the textile, personal-care, rigid and flexible polyurethane foam and agrochemical sectors. The investment for the plant amounts to around €6 million.
“With this expansion of our production, we are broadening our product portfolio and can thereby open up new markets in the growth regions of India and Southeast Asia,” explained Christian Hartel, executive board member at Wacker Chemie AG with responsibility for Asia, at the opening ceremony. “This investment underscores the commitment of WACKER to the Indian market and shows that our company is continuously growing its technical expertise and capacities in Asia.” Hydrosilylation is a chemical process in which organofunctional groups, such as glycols, olefins or ketones, are ‘docked’ onto the periphery of silicones. This is done in order to modify the properties of the end product and render a silicone fluid, for example, hydrophobic (waterrepellent) or hydrophilic (water-attracting). Visit: www.wacker.com
MTU Aero Engines Polska expands its high-tech facility in Poland
breaking for the construction planned in September 2018. The tremendous advancements in the field of additive manufacturing technologies and the steep increase in production rates within the whole MTU Group are behind this move. For instance, production volumes of components for the latest geared turbofan engines will increase significantly as well
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TU Aero Engines, Germany’s leading engine manufacturer, is once again adding new production and assembly capacities at its facility in Rzeszów, Poland. Plans are for MTU Aero Engines’ Polska’s existing floor space to be enlarged by another 11,400 square metres, with ground
22 Industry Europe
roupe GM, the leading international player in the guest amenity industry, has announced a multi-million euro investment into the expansion of its Groupe GM Cosmétiques France (GGMCF) plant in Lyon. The factory produces high-quality amenity products for hotels in more than 70 countries and has been facing a considerable increase in orders since the last quarter of 2016. By summer 2018, the factory will grow from 4000m2 to 5200m2. To answer the growing demand for its amenity products, Groupe GM is planning to purchase 9 new machines in 2018, growing the plant’s production capabilities to 31 machines in total, with the possibility of adding 3 to 5 more machines in the future. Groupe GM has witnessed significant growth in units produced. In 2015, the Lyon plant manufactured 40 million tubes and bottles. Today, units produced has increased to 65 million units and in 2019, GGMCF will be able to produce up to 85 million of tubes and bottles. “The expansion of our Groupe GM Cosmétiques France factory in Lyon is an important investment for Groupe GM as it responds to the growing demand for our products”, said Laurent Marchand, President of Groupe GM. Visit: www.groupegm.com
as the activities for assembly and production of components and modules for latest widebody propulsion systems powering the 787 Dreamliner and the 777X. The MTU Group’s investment in the site so far amounts to €100 million, and it plans to invest an additional €80 million in the next 5 years (2018–2022). Visit: www.mtu.de
