German BOPP film specialist Treofan (Raunheim; www.treofan.com) is spending USD 45m (EUR 40m) to install a five-layer, 10.4m-wide orientation line at its plant in Zacapu / Mexico. The new line will result in a net production increase of around 30,000 t/y, which is equal to 50% of the plant’s current capacity as an existing small line will be mothballed. The additional capacity is due to go into operation in the fourth quarter of 2018.

Alan Crighton, chief operating officer of Treofan Americas, said the company has been working in close co-operation with German equipment supplier Brückner (Siegsdorf; www.brueckner-maschinenbau.com) to design a line capable of producing its current and future specialty BOPP film products at more than 10m-wide and at speeds of up to 600m per minute, building on the experience gained from the 8.2m-wide five-layer Brückner line that has been in operation for nearly 10 years.

Treofan said the additional asset represented the next phase in its reinvestment strategy which kicked off in 2014. To date, the group has added two production lines at its businesses in the Americas at a total cost of USD 100m.