ALTANA’s ACTEGA Division Inaugurates New Innovation Center at Grevenbroich Research Site

  • Investment: around 10 million euros 
  • Space for research and development doubled
  • New headquarters for simulation of future packaging trends


Grevenbroich, June 5, 2019 – ACTEGA Rhenania, a globally leading coatings and adhesives specialist, inaugurated its new laboratory building in Grevenbroich on June 5. The company, which belongs to the specialty chemicals group ALTANA, invested around 10 million euros in the new building. The building has an area of 5,700 square meters, doubling ACTEGA Rhenania’s space for research and development. “With this investment we are considerably boosting our innovative strength and bolstering one of our most important competitive advantages,” says Dr. Thomas Sawitowski, the managing director of ACTEGA Rhenania GmbH.

 
The new laboratory building of ACTEGA Rhenania in Grevenbroich

A special feature of the new building, which at full capacity will accommodate around 70 employees, is the customer technology center. It encompasses various manufacturing plants in miniature format and enables ACTEGA to understand production processes and specific customer requirements better in practice than is possible under pure laboratory conditions. Not only ACTEGA Rhenania but also other companies in the ACTEGA division will make use of it.

“With the new building, the Grevenbroich site, to which we have been true for more than 100 years, will become one of the worldwide innovation centers for ACTEGA,” says Dr. Thomas Sawitowski, the managing director of ACTEGA Rhenania GmbH.

The company has traditionally worked closely with its customers in order to understand their needs in detail and to develop tailor-made solutions. This results in products that almost everyone comes into contact with in daily life. Many of these solutions help prolong the shelf life of food products. Among ACTEGA Rhenania’s most well-known products are inner coatings for yogurt lids. The aluminum foil used for this purpose is coated with a food-friendly coating manufactured by ACTEGA Rhenania that keeps the contents fresh and protects the lid from corrosion. The Grevenbroich-based company recently developed a PVC-free coating that enables packaging manufacturers to use significantly thinner foils, which can be recycled better. Thanks to this innovation, considerable amounts of aluminum can be saved. 

About ACTEGA: 
ACTEGA is a division of the international specialty chemicals group ALTANA and develops and produces coatings and sealants, printing inks and adhesives for flexible and rigid packaging and for the graphic arts industry. These products do not only lend an attractive appearance to materials such as paper, paperboard, plastic and metal, but also provide clearly defined technical properties, e.g. chemical and physical resistance to the materials' surface. 

The main customers for the products ACTEGA develops, manufactures and markets are in the packaging industry. ACTEGA is one of the market leaders in overprint varnishes and is the technological leader in the rapidly expanding sector of water-based sealants for flexible packaging. ACTEGA products do not only ensure that the packaging will look appealing, but also help that the contents will remain fresh for a longer time. 

ACTEGA is already one of the world’s leading vendors of sealants for closures and glass containers; ACTEGA is also the technological leader when it comes to water-based sealants for cans. These products are used to make seals between the contact surfaces, such as glass on metal (bottle closures) or metal on metal (can lids). They ensure that the contents and other substances such as CO2 remain inside the packaging while “locking out” all contaminants.


www.actega.com

About ALTANA:
ALTANA is a global leader in true specialty chemicals. The Group offers innovative, environmentally compatible solutions for coating manufacturers, paint and plastics processors, the printing and packaging industries, the cosmetics sector and the electrical and electronics industry. The product range includes additives, special coatings and adhesives, effect pigments, sealants and compounds, impregnating resins and varnishes, and testing and measuring instruments. ALTANA's four divisions, BYK, ECKART, ELANTAS, and ACTEGA, all occupy a leading position in their target markets with respect to quality, product solution expertise, innovation and service.

Headquartered in Wesel, Germany, the ALTANA Group has 47 production facilities and 60 service and research laboratories worldwide. Throughout the Group about 6,400 people work to ensure the worldwide success of ALTANA. In 2018, ALTANA achieved sales of €2.3 billion. About 7 percent of sales are invested in research and development every year. Its high earning power and high growth rate make ALTANA one of the most innovative, fastest growing, and profitable chemical companies in the world.

www.altana.com

act.text.compare.close