SAERTEX continues to expand its global production network

Strengthening regional supply chains through new production capacities worldwide

Saerbeck, December 12, 2022 - SAERTEX is realigning its capacities for the production of technical textiles made of glass and carbon fibers worldwide. In the company's global production network, additional capacities for lightweight carbon fiber fabrics will be created at the two German sites. At the same time, machines and systems for the production of glass fiber NCFs are being installed at the sites in India, South Africa and Turkey in order to adapt the company's delivery performance to regional changes in demand.

SAERTEX is reorganizing its global network of production sites, comprising 12 plants on five continents, for the manufacture of multiaxial fabrics made of glass, carbon, aramid, and natural fibers. This is a key component in the expansion of regional supply chains to ensure a stable supply to the wind power, mobility, and industrial markets. „We are investing in the performance of our production plants worldwide so that we can supply our customers economically and reliably with short delivery routes,“ says Christoph Geyer, CEO of SAERTEX. „In this way, we are adapting our offering to a changing market landscape and making further progress in our global sustainability efforts to reduce transport routes through local delivery capabilities.“ Additional capacity for the production of multiaxial carbon fiber fabrics is being built at the company's headquarters in Saerbeck, Germany, and at the site of its subsidiary TK Industries in Selbitz, Germany. In addition, the new range of pultruded carbon planks will go into series production here. Preparations for this are almost complete. „Saerbeck is not only a center of innovation, but also the most important and sustainable production site within the group. This is particularly true for technology products in the carbon sector,“ says Dietmar Möcke, CTO at SAERTEX. The high demand for non-crimp fabrics made from lightweight carbon fibers will be met by the installation of an additional MAX-5 line for the production of HeavyTow fabrics in Saerbeck. „We are also setting up an additional production shift at the Selbitz site to create further capacity for this important area of our product range,“ says Möcke. In return, production capacities for glass fiber fabrics are being expanded at other locations of the internationally active family-owned company. The installation of additional multiaxial machines at the SAERTEX plants in India, South Africa, and Turkey has already been completed or is in full swing. The new plant in Mexico has already been successfully set up in recent months, meaning that the SAERTEX site in Ciudad Juarez can now supply Mexican customers in the wind industry. „Despite significant restrictions due to the pandemic, we have successfully completed an important part of our global optimization measures,“ said Dietmar Möcke. “Depending on demand, we will also use the flexibility of our global production network to adapt our local delivery performance to the needs of our customers.“