Nuremberg/Changzhou – Our new LEONI (Changzhou) Wire Co. Ltd. (LCW) wire and strand plant was officially opened in a formal ceremony held on 28 March 2003. The company moved into the new facility in February, less than one year after the first spade was struck. The facility, covering an area of more than 4,000 m2, is in future to produce wire and strands to European standards. LEONI Wire has, by building this new plant in Changzhou, expanded its production capacity to meet the increasing demand from the rapidly growing Chinese cable industry.
With annual rates of growth in excess of 8 %, Asia’s markets, and especially China, have gained immensely in significance for the LEONI Wire division. Tapping this highly promising market to a greater extent called for on-going expansion of capacity at the Changzhou location, where LCW started producing wire and strands back in 1995. However, because the existing works site provided no more options for expanding wire production, LCW has now built its new production facility on 15,000 m2 of land that now also permits further expansion.
Focus on the Chinese cable industry
LEONI (Changzhou) Wire’s product range comprises round wire, braided wire and strands that are applied particularly in cable extrusion. LCW supplies its products primarily to the Chinese cable industry. The four largest cable manufacturers located in the greater Shanghai region are among LCW’s customers, for instance. Its customer base also includes cable producers located in Malaysia, Korea and Japan, with the likes of Sumitomo and Nexans for example. In addition, LCW wire is used in the telecommunications as well as automotive industries and also for geophysical applications, such as oil exploration for example.
An excellent order situation
Given its excellent order situation, LCW now runs a 4-shift operation: 24 hours a day, seven days a week. In line with the forecast rates of growth, the plan is for the current number of 51 employees to rise by between 10 and 15 % a year. The Chinese automotive industry is set provide especially strong growth impetus in the next few years. As the output of vehicles increases, so does the demand for vehicle cabling and therefore also for wire and strands.
