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Johns Manville to hike glass fibre capacity in Etowah

04 Mar '15

2 min read

Johns Manville (JM), a Berkshire Hathaway company said it will expand its glass fibre operations capacity in Etowah, Tennessee, to service the increasing needs of the engineered thermoplastics industry.

In a press release, JM said that the North American composite market needs a strong and reliable supply of glass fibres to translate innovations into steady market growth.

“JM’s operations in North America are ideally located to reliably serve customers across the growing compounding base in the Midwest and Southeast,” it added.

“The composites industry is growing steadily and we are convinced that trends will continue to drive demand for glass fibre products,” said Brian Sapp, global fibres business director for JM Engineered Products.

He too added, “We are making this investment to support our customers’ plans for growth, and we will continue with innovations in technology and product development in fibres to support our customers.”

The planned expansion in Etowah includes a new furnace to support the launch of the next generation of global products for reinforced thermoplastic composites.

The new furnace, due to start up in mid-2016, will allow for production growth and flexibility within JM’s product families for polyamides, polyesters and polypropylenes.

“We are confident this investment will continue to show JM’s commitment to this industry and to our customers,” Sapp informed.

JM markets products for building and mechanical insulation, commercial roofing and roof insulation as well as fibres and nonwovens for commercial, industrial and residential applications.

It serves markets that include aerospace, automotive and transportation, air handling, appliance, HVAC, pipe and equipment, filtration, waterproofing, building, flooring, interiors and wind energy.

In business since 1858, the Denver-based company has annual sales of approximately $2.6 billion and holds leadership positions in all of the key markets that it serves.

JM employs approximately 7,000 people and operates 44 manufacturing facilities in North America, Europe and China. (AR)

Fibre2fashion News Desk - India