The biggest Austrian manufacturer of plastic films, Unterland Flexible Packaging AG (HQ: A-6330 Kufstein) – formerly W. Hamburger Unterland AG – which was acquired in 1998 by the Hungarian chemicals group, Tiszai Vegyi Kombinat Tr. (TVK, H-3581 Tiszaujvaros) (for details see PIE 23, 1998), is about to undergo profound restructuring. The reorganisation will focus on modernisation, cutting costs, raising value-added, expanding capacities and utilising synergies in the TVK Group. As Board Chairman, Dr. János Kucsma, stated, the measures also envisage that the Kufstein, Wiener Neustadt and Tiszaujvaros sites will specialise in the manufacture of particular products, and that the overall number of products will be reduced. New investments would be needed, he said, to implement the strategy. For example, a new clean-room production hall would be built for two extrusion lines, with the first of the two plants (PP-Coex) going on stream in the first quarter of 2000. In addition, a new extrusion line for agricultural stretch film would be commencing production before the end of 1999.

Unterland´s majority shareholder, TVK, has introduced a new corporate structure with effect from July 1, 1999. The two main business groups, petrochemicals and plastics processing, are now completely separate from one another. Following the reorganisation, the plastics processing group comprises the following business units: Biofol (BOPP film), Agroplast (agricultural film, PP multi-wall sheet, binder twine), Formplast (production of injection mouldings and blow mouldings), Flexible Packagings (film).