JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #44 - October 2008 - Special Asia - 8

COMPANIES COMPANIES New organisation unveiled at 3B On April 30, 2008, Platinum Equity became the new owner of “3B, the Fibreglass Company”, a leading supplier of fibreglass reinforcement products and technologies. The company was created following the divesture of Owens Corning’s fibreglass facilities in Battice (Belgium) and Birkeland (Norway) and is now a standalone business with its own Sales, Marketing and Technology organization. After a transition period during which Platinum Equity has taken the time to align the overall business strategy with its long-term objectives for the business, 3B is now in a position to unveil its new corporate organisation. Jean-François Santicoli will continue to guide the company’s strategy and organization as president. Hugues Jacquemin has been appointed CEO (chief executive officer). He will focus on achieving a growth agenda aiming at giving 3B a global presence within the glass fibre industry that will enhance the value 3B brings to its customers. Hugues Jacquemin joins 3B from Platinum Equity, where he was actively involved in the acquisition process. He brings 15 years of global business experience, the last 6 of which in the composites industry working for Owens Corning. Pierre Josselin will join 3B as COO (chief operating officer) from the Platinum Equity Operation team. Besides his past experience in charge of the operational aspects of the 3B acquisition, Pierre Josselin will bring 18 years of experience in business-to-business commercial relationships and in the development of new products and technology, together with a comprehensive supply chain/manufacturing background. With this new organisation, 3B will focus on reinforcing its position on the European market and promptly initiate steps to build its global presence while continuing to remain supportive of its customers through the enhancement of its core values: strength, reliability and proximity. www.3b-fibreglass.com Embraer to create composites facility in Portugal Embraer plans to create two new industrial units dedicated to manufacturing complex airframe structures, one focused on metallic assemblies and the other on composites, both of which will be located in the city of Évora, Portugal – as announced on July 26, 2008. The new factories will be highly automated and use state-of-the-art manufacturing processes, coherently with the company's lean manufacturing initiatives. They will represent an estimated investment of €100 million (metallic) and €48 million (composites) over the next six years, according to their respective implementation schedules. These investment were already considered in Embraer’s long-term planning and do not alter any of its economical and financial policies. www.embraer.com SGL Group acquires 51% of Abeking & Rasmussen Rotec SGL Group announced on August 6, 2008 the acquisition of a 51% majority share of Abeking & Rasmussen Rotec GmbH & Co KG, one of the leading independent manufacturers of rotor blades for wind turbines. The SGL Group will assume managerial responsibility of this joint venture. The purchase price is kept confidential under a non-disclosure agreement between both parties. With 300 employees at its Lemwerder site near Bremen, Germany A&R Rotec expects a turnover of approximately €50 million in 2008. The joint venture will operate under the name “SGL Rotec GmbH & Co KG” and will be based in Lemwerder. The target is to position SGL Rotec as a leading rotor blade manufacturer with “best-in-class” manufacturing know-how and to expand into wind energy markets like China, India, Turkey, and North America by establishing local production sites. The transaction is still subject to the approval of the German antitrust authorities. The forward integration into blade manufacturing complements SGL Group's activities in the Carbon Fibres & Composites (CFC) Business Unit, covering now the entire value chain related to the wind energy sector, which includes precursor and carbon fibre production, followed by fabrics, preforms and prepregs, as well as rotor blade components and finished rotor blades. Customers in the wind energy sector will have a sustainable supply security, one of the key success factors in this industry. The wind energy industry is the largest single consumer of materials based on industrial carbon fibre. SGL Group has already positioned itself as a leading materials supplier to this sector and strengthened its portfolio as the only integrated European carbon fibre and composites manufacturer through strategic acquisitions of Epo and Kümpers. The Group is planning to triple its carbon fibre production capacity up to 12,000 metric tons per year by the year 2012, to take advantage of the growing substitution of basic materials. Its carbon fibre production capacity will be 6,000 metric tons per year by the beginning of 2009. www.sglgroup.com JEC Composites Magazine / No44 October 2008

http://www.3b-fibreglass.com http://www.embraer.com http://www.sglgroup.com

JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #44 - October 2008 - Special Asia

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #44 - October 2008 - Special Asia