Poland

Ryszard Jania, Pilkington Automotive Poland’s General Manager, announces that current productivity in Poland will be doubled by 2014.

This will be possible thanks to the new factory, which will have capacity of 7 million automotive glass parts per year.

Ceremonial unveiling of a foundation stone of the second Pilkington Automotive’s production plant in Poland took place on September 13th, 2011. The plant will be built in Chmielów, on a building lot of ca. 13.5 ha located within Tarnobrzeg Special Economic Zone, 30 km South from the existing production plant in Sandomierz. Pilkington Automotive, a member of Japanese NSG Group, will be the largest investor in the Tarnobrzeg sub-zone.
“The decision to choose Poland and Tarnobrzeg Special Economic Zone as a location of the new  Pilkington Automotive’s plant was based on excellent performance of the existing plant in Sandomierz as well as an EU grant and TSEZ’s offer” – says Ryszard Jania, General Manager, Pilkington Automotive Poland. Overall cost of the investment will reach ca. 450 m PLN. 350 m PLN will be provided by Pilkington Automotive, and another 100 m PLN by Panattoni company. A part of the investment will be financed by a 92.8 m PLN donation granted by Polish Ministry of Economy to Pilkington Automotive as a support for investment of a great economical significance. Sandomierz plant, as part of global Pilkington Automotive Organisation, is a leader in many areas of NSG Group’s operation, achieving the highest productivity and quality standards. Investment in Chmielów will consist of three production lines and a warehouse with a total footprint of  65000 m2. Construction works will be divided in two stages to be completed within 4 years period. Between September 2011 and April 2012 two laminating lines (APBL and BOX) will be built. Within the same period, Panattoni will build a warehouse for stock  storage and value added production. The building will be leased by Pilkington Automotive. Production launch for the 1st stage lines is planned for 4th quarter of 2012. Second stage, a construction of 2DFB toughening line, will commence in 2013 with a production launch planned for  2014.

“Target annual capacity of the Chmielów plant is near 2 m windscreens and ca. 5 m toughened sidelights and backlights for cars and trucks. It will mean doubling the current Pilkington Automotive’s capacity in Poland” – said Ryszard Jania. Automotive glass from Chmielów will be delivered to world’s major vehicle manufacturers like General Motors, Ford, Volkswagen or Fiat, for which Pilkington already make full sets of glass for Fiat Panda manufactured in Tychy, Poland. There is a plan to export up to 70% of Chmielów plant’s production.

There’s also a lot of hope placed on the new plant in regard to unemployment reduction in the region. By 2014, Pilkington Automotive’s investment will create ca. 500 new jobs for people from Tarnobrzeg, Klimontów and Nowa Dęba areas. Companies cooperating with the new plant will create additional 150 jobs e.g. in security, internal transport and housekeeping. Recruitment will progress by stages, as individual production lines are launched. The most new employees will join the company between 2012 and 2013. Due to planned transfer of some employees from Sandomierz to Chmielów, recruitment will also be organized for Sandomierz plant. Glass production plants need qualified personnel. That is why Pilkington Automotive entered into cooperation with local technical schools, and will organize trainings with experienced specialists. That will increase young graduates’ chances to find good jobs, possibly also in Pilkington’s factories.