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BMW and SGL JV to triple carbon fibre capacity

Due to the high demand for carbon fibre in automotive production, SGL Automotive Carbon Fibresand joint venture partner, BMW Group, are planning to triple the capacity of their carbon fibre plant in Moses Lake, WA. The expansion will be funded by an investment of US 200 million, in addition to the previously invested US 100 million. According to the group, the site expansion, scheduled to be completed by early 2015, will make the plant in Moses Lake the world’s largest carbon fibre plant. The carbon fibre plant in Moses Lake is a key element in the strategy pursued by the two companies, which anticipates the industrialised large-series production of carbon fibre reinforced plastics (CFRP) for the application in future vehicle concepts.

12th May 2014

Innovation in Textiles
 |  Munich / Wiesbaden / Moses Lake, WA

Transport/​Aerospace, Industrial

Due to the high demand for carbon fibre in automotive production, SGL Automotive Carbon Fibresand  joint venture partner, BMW Group, are planning to triple the capacity of their carbon fibre plant in Moses Lake, WA.

The expansion will be funded by an investment of US 200 million, in addition to the previously invested US 100 million. According to the group, the site expansion, scheduled to be completed by early 2015, will make the plant in Moses Lake the world’s largest carbon fibre plant.

The carbon fibre plant in Moses Lake is a key element in the strategy pursued by the two companies, which anticipates the industrialised large-series production of carbon fibre reinforced plastics (CFRP) for the application in future vehicle concepts.

New opportunities in lightweight construction

The Moses Lake plant operates two production lines, exclusively for BMW i, with an annual output of around 3,000 tons of carbon fibre. This summer SGL Automotive Carbon Fibres will commission a third and fourth production line in Moses Lake, which are currently being built, thus doubling the plant’s capacity to 6,000 tons per year.

“With its highly automated carbon fibre production and stringent quality standards, Moses Lake is setting new standards in the industry,” commented Dr Jürgen Köhler, CEO of SGL Group. “Together with the BMW Group, we are doing pioneering work to establish CFRP as a material in large-series automotive production. In a mix of materials, CFRP offers new opportunities in lightweight construction for eco-friendly mobility.”

The expansion will be funded by an investment of US 200 million, in addition to the previously invested US 100 million. © SGL Group

Dr Klaus Draeger, Board Member Purchasing and Supplier Network at BMW, said: “CFRP is a key material for the automotive industry of the 21st century.”

“Thanks to the pooling of the SGL Group’s expertise and our knowledge in large-series production of CFRP components, we will be able to produce the ultra-lightweight high-tech material also for other model series, at competitive costs and in large quantities.”

Production of carbon fibre composites

The production of carbon fibre composites for automotive manufacturing requires several process steps. The necessary precursor, which is based on polyacrylnitrile fibre, is made by a joint venture between SGL Group and the Japanese company Mitsubishi Rayon in Otake, Japan.

In the BMW i models, CFRP already holds a significant share in the mix of materials, a first at this scope and in series production. © SGL Group

In a next step, polyacrylnitrile fibre is turned into the actual carbon fibre in Moses Lake. This material is then processed at the second joint venture site in Wackersdorf, Germany, and turned into textile carbon fibre layers, the starting point for the production of CFRP body parts at the BMW plants in Landshut and Leipzig.

In the BMW i models, CFRP already holds a significant share in the mix of materials, a first at this scope and in series production. The joint venture gives the BMW Group access to this innovative key material in the long term.

www.sglgroup.com

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