NSG Group Announces Investment at Its NGF EUROPE Glass Cord Manufacturing Site in St Helens, UK

The site will become the first fully-integrated high tensile strength glass cord manufacturing factory in Europe and the only such facility outside Japan.

The investment will add a fiber-forming facility at the site, an important primary process in glass cord manufacture, involving the production of glass fiber filament. The growth in the market for high tensile strength glass cord created by the ever-increasing technological developments in the automotive market has led to the decision to invest in a facility which will manufacture the filament from raw materials.

The new facility will shorten production times with the site reducing its dependency on filament delivery from NSG in Japan and reduce transport costs and environmental impact, in line with the Group’s Sustainability agenda. Work will begin on the new facility in September 2012 and the new fiber forming line is

expected to be commissioned in June 2013.

NGF EUROPE managing director, Alistair Poole said ‘The investment confirms our commitment to our customers in Europe and will ensure that our business remains at the forefront of technological development and is able to respond to customer demands and expectations. Furthermore, we are pleased that we are able to expand our advanced manufacturing capabilities in the region and continue to invest in our successful apprenticeship scheme’.