Print: Click on the print button to print the page. Email: Click on the email button to the page to a friend. Social Buttons: Click on one of the social buttons to share the story on your favorite site.
Past Top Companies Reports
International Top 40
Raw Material Prices, Raw Material Prices, Raw Material Prices
That was the key point on nearly every nonwoven producer's mind in this year's Top Company report. How to reduce them, how to pass them on to their customers, how they will trend going forward. With oil prices hitting all-time highs, it's no surprise that most of the nonwovens executives interviewed cited the price of oil-based raw materials as the number one problem facing their businesses moving forward. Most executives have combatted these price hikes by imposing their own price increases on their customers but these measures have only taken nonwovens producers part of the way when it comes to margin erosion. Other measures have included reduced basis weights, streamlined production and alternative raw materials.
Despite these troubles, the nonwovens industry remains a strong and growing market with nearly every producer reporting sales growth and several announcing expansion plans in a number of technologies. On the spunmelt side, Brazilian producers Fitesa and Companhia Providencia have announced plans to enter North America and additional investment is being planned by Pegas in the Czech Republic and PGI in Mexico. Ahlstrom continues to invest heavily in both wipes and filtration and Denmark's Fibertex is focusing on the technical side of its business with new lines in Denmark and the Czech Republic. Meanwhile, Fiberweb and Concert Industries are investing in airlaid technology.
