by Jaroslaw Adamowski
Bydgoszcz, Poland — Polish PU foam producer Ciech Pianki has unveiled plans to invest PLN 10m (EUR 2.32 m) to open a new facility.
The Bydgoszcz-based subsidiary of Poland’s chemical giant Ciech will use the facility to store its PU foam products and increase its output capacity.
“The development of Ciech Pianki justifies new investments in solutions that will allow us to increase the output capacity and improve our customer service,” Maciej Tybura, the chief executive of Ciech, told local daily Gazeta Pomorska.
The investment will allow Ciech Pianki to fully automatate the process of storing foams with a length of up to 30 m. Under the plan, the project is to be completed in the third quarter of 2017, according to data from the manufacturer.
Ciech Pianki says that Poland’s demand for PU foam is about 160 kT/year, and the company holds a domestic market share of between 15% and 17%. Ciech’s PU foam subsidiary was set up in 1971 under the name of Zachem Chemical Plant.
The Bydgoszcz-based facility was established as the country’s first manufacturer of flexible foams. In 1999, the factory was modernised to make highly elastic material, and in 2007, lightweight and flame retardant foams were added to its product portfolio.
Ciech Pianki says it supplies its output to mattress and furniture producers, and foam processors. KI Chemistry, a Luxembourg-based entity owned by the Polish Kulczyk family, is Ciech’s majority shareholder, with a 51.14% stake in the chemical group. The remaining major shareholders include the country’s investment fund TFI PZU and private pension fund Nationale Nederlanden OFE, with 12.2% and 9.49% of the group’s shares, respectively.
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