Wolfen film plant heads to K 2013 with a trade fair innovation


When you reach for a credit card on your travels in the world, it is not unlikely that you will be holding a product made in Saxony-Anhalt. Identity cards the size of bank cards issued by Austrian and Canadian health insurance companies enjoy the same place of origin. Personal identity cards or passports in Morocco or Mexico also rely on this know-how. Günther Burkardt, Managing Director of the Folienwerk Wolfen GmbH Company, names countless application possibilities for his company’s products. Films for 'smart cards' or ID documents represent only a part of the range of products.

Over 200 different raw materials roll off of the conveyor belts for further processing. The films differ in colour, smoothness and strength. Others receive UV protection during the production process to better protect the products subsequently packed in them. The specialities produced in the southern part of Saxony-Anhalt also include films, in which medical technology (such as artificial joints or surgical instruments) has made its journey to doctors’ practices or hospitals. Rigid films are created on a special cast film line, whereby up to five different types of material can be combined into a single product. Since 2003, biodegradable polylactic acid (PLA) films, made from sustainable materials, have been added to the product range. The versatility of the Wolfen-based company is characterised by niches that underpin its success.

'We adapt to customer wishes, develop new products on their behalf and – as a classical medium-sized enterprise – are able to react quickly and score with short delivery times', states Günther Burkardt. The company's in-house Research and Development Department has more than enough to do. Its engineers constantly cooperate with (amongst others) the Merseburg and Anhalt Universities of Applied Science. This close interaction pays off, helping to bind specialist staff at an early stage.

The Wolfen film plant is attending the largest international plastics industry trade fair K 2013 in Hall 08b at Booth D58 with an innovation – EVA films for the glass industry: they consist of copolymer ethylene vinyl acetate, were developed in recent years. Thanks to their outstanding resistance to heat and ageing, they are eminently suitable for laminated glass and open up completely new possibilities in the field of architecture. Another particularly useful application is their use in protecting solar cells from external influences, such as dampness. Their high degree of transparency ensures a high level of translucency.

This year, the Wolfen film plant expects an increase in turnover of up to seven per cent. In 2012, it sold goods to the value of € 40 m. The export quota is at around 70 per cent, reports the managing director. In addition to the EU region, deliveries ensue to Switzerland, Russia, the USA and Nigeria.

'Business is good', states Günther Burkardt, noting that the financial restraints imposed by the financial crisis have long since been overcome. The early decision for the Wolfen location was indeed the correct one. 1991 witnessed the birth of the company. It represented the first spin-off from the former Wolfen Photochemical Combine, where polyester films had long since been produced – albeit for other applications. Thanks to the highly trained staff, it proved a relatively simple matter to build up a completely new company. More than € 20 m have been invested during the past twelve years. In 1999, the company relocated to the industrial estate in the district of Thalheim. The managing director praises the ideal conditions existing there. It only took six weeks to acquire the company site, the permissions were promptly forthcoming and the logistical links have proven to be outstanding. He notes that funding was a simple matter as well.

The company today possesses a site some 60,000 square metres in size. This enables further expansion, given that the 8,000 square metre production area has reached the limit of its capacity. Consideration has been given to investment in new plants. The total of 40 employees in 1991 has now become 150, a third of them women. Every year, an average of six to eight apprentices undergo training.


Author (text/photo): Klaus-Peter Voigt

Contact:
Günther Burkardt
Folienwerk Wolfen GmbH
Guardianstraße 4
06766 Bitterfeld-Wolfen
Germany
ph: +49 3494 69790
E-Mail: info.ignore@folienwerk-wolfen.de
Web: www.folienwerk-wolfen.de