Weinheim/Chennai. March 10, 2014. EagleBurgmann KE, a company of the Freudenberg Group, has opened a new state-of-the-art production facility in Chennai, India. Answering the growing demand for fabric and metal expansion joints in India, the company invests Rs. seven crores and is starting the manufacturing of one-stop solutions to guarantee highest quality in all aspects of production. "This is an important step in the more than 26 years of history of EagleBurgmann KE in India", says Dr. Jörg Matthias Grossmann, Regional Representative of the Freudenberg Group in India and Chief Financial Officer of Freudenberg Chemical Specialities. "The new plant is a result of the sustainable and gradual growth of the Indian entity and will help to strengthen the company's position as the market leader with more than 40 percent in fabric expansion joints in India."
The grand opening ceremony of the production plant center was hosted by Yasunari Unemura, Board Member of EagleBurgmann Group, Jürgen Peschla, CEO of EagleBurgmann Expansion Joint Solutions, and the General Manager of EagleBurgmann KE, Tapas Biswas. "The Chennai plant is of high strategic priority for us. We invested Rs. four crores in 2013 and will invest another Rs. three crores on various machineries," explains Tapas Biswas. "By controlling all quality aspects and minimizing vendor activities, we aim to be the first in India to provide complete high-quality expansion joint solutions under one roof."
With a total space of almost 6,500 square meters, thereof 450 square meters for administration, the new production site in Chennai, India, was brought on line now. The plant has been conceptualized, constructed and commissioned only by employees of EagleBurgmann KE without hiring any external consultant. In this way the production flow as well as the infrastructure could be arranged most efficiently. To this day, 152 associates work on the new site. The product portfolio includes both standard as well as customized fabric and metal expansion joints. Customer-oriented sales teams and a strong service network across the region complete EagleBurgmann KE's business profile in India.
Due to the larger plant, the fabric production capacity has doubled. The facility also includes now in-house manufacturing operations of steel fabrication, shot blasting and painting. This way, EagleBurgmann KE strives to strengthen both high-quality standards and the control on quality aspects. "Our aim is to deliver one-shot expansion joint solutions right from design to dispatch under one roof. Therewith, we optimize our processes in production, logistics and administration", says Tapas Biswas. For the future, EagleBurgmann KE is also planning the production of circular metal bellows on the plant in Chennai.
Expansion Joints are vital components in most industrial plants, for example cement or steel plants as well as refineries. They are installed as flexible connections in air and flue gas pipe and duct systems to take up or compensate for thermal expansion, vibration and misalignments. Today, advancements in processing and generating technologies are combined with high demands for efficiency. This, along with a clear orientation towards environmental protection, puts high demands on expansion joints design. EagleBurgmann KE in India offers a "concept-to-design" module. Customers are assisted with, for example, thermal-movement calculations, application-specific design selection for expansion joints, 3D modelling or stress analysis. In other cases EagleBurgmann KE carries out the selection of fabric or joint design and provides the customers with detailed expansion joint drawings.
About Freudenberg in India
Freudenberg has held business ties with companies in India for more than 90 years. The Group employs over 3,500 associates at 30 locations. Freudenberg in India recorded sales of Rs.1,114 crores in 2012. For further information please go to www.freudenberg.in