Texsus S.p.A, the Italian producer of nonwovens and frontal tape, has announced that it has invested in a brand-new production facility in Poland.
In this, the company’s latest round of investment, Texsus is changing its influence “towards the very heart of Europe, ready to quickly supply our longstanding customers, as well as the newly developing markets, with outstanding quality products for baby care, feminine hygiene and adult incontinence, assuring short lead times and logistic flexibility.”
Texsus states that the new facility is valued at more than €30m and will focus on the production of air-through bonded nonwovens for the hygiene market. Of the 50,000 sqm site, 50% will be occupied by the manufacturing plant.
Equipped with state-of-the-art ATB and spooling lines, the site will allow the company to “expand its overall nonwovens production capacity by at least 50%, and its spooling breadth to 100% of its nonwovens volume output.”
The new plant, which will act “as the heart of the group for the manufacturing of nonwoven ADL and frontal tape,” is expected to be operational by Q1 2020, Texsus states. With the company’s headquarters situated in Tuscany, Italy, its R&D department will remain in the Mediterranean nation.
Texsus is known for the manufacture of brands including Acquitex, Multifunctional Acquitex and Vortex acquisition and distribution layers, as well as the Softex liners brand. Alongside the expansion of its high loft manufacturing capacity, Texsus has also recently begun a new chapter applying its expertise to new products and processes in which the ability to combine distinct layers has led to the development of innovative multifunctional and multi-layered materials. This, according to the company, culminated in the 2016 launch of the new nonwovens, frontal tape Sloopy.
European growth
The announcement follows another positive year for the European nonwovens industry. In April 2018, EDANA, the European association of the nonwovens and related industries, revealed that European nonwovens production grew by 4.3% in 2017.
This impressive figure equated to a total production volume of 2,444,450 tonnes with a total estimated turnover of €7,869m (+5.6%). The hygiene market remained the primary end-use for European-produced nonwovens, claiming a 29.8% market share by weight, yet significant growth was also recorded in other end-uses.
According to EDANA, the medical sector saw growth of 13.2%, the automotive industry recorded an increase of 13%, and electronic materials witnessed a rise of 21%. Describing the latest figures, Jacques Prigneaux, market analysis and economic affairs director, EDANA, says: “We continue to see the expected variances within the EU region. Although some established players like France and the Benelux countries were at a standstill, many pushed on from last year with Greece, Romania, Czech Republic, Slovenia, the UK and Ireland all witnessing growth.”
