Oerlikon Nonwoven has commissioned a further highperformance meltblown system with ecuTEC+ electro-charging unit at NOWOtex GmbH & Co. KG in Eichenzell, Germany. The Hesse-based company specializes in needled nonwovens and – with the new system – now also has meltblown nonwovens manufacturing capacities, allowing NOWOtex to expand its product portfolio. As of now, the company is producing polypropylene filter nonwovens, which are particularly suitable for protective masks. The coronavirus pandemic has not only increased demand for protective masks, the domestic manufacture of these products is now also be promoted and supported by the German Government.
Using the new meltblown system, NOWOtex will in future be manufacturing first-class filter nonwovens that can be used to p roduce up to 600 million operating room filter masks or 300 million highlyeffective FFP2 masks per year. The system has been optimally equipped with the ecuTEC+ electrocharging unit for the production of mask nonwovens. “Thanks to the excellent collaboration, the system has been operating under stable production conditions for several weeks now, with optimum nonwoven quality of the very highest standards”, summarizes Vincent Bach, Managing Director of NOWOtex.
And the system is also ideal for manufacturing other high-end filtration nonwovens for industrial applications. “The Oerlikon Nonwoven system offers us maximum flexibility, allowing us to not just manufacture nonwovens for masks. Demand is huge and, thanks to the meltblown system, we have been able to launch our new NOWOmelt product range. This is providing our clients with an even broader range of innovative nonwovens”, explains Bach, talking about the investment in the new Oerlikon Nonwoven system. And Dr. Ingo Mählmann, Senior Vice President Sales & Marketing Oerlikon Nonwoven, adds: “Many systems exclusively designed for mask nonwoven production were commissioned during the pandemic. In contrast, we are focusing on sustainability. Our meltblown systems have been designed in such a way that they can be converted for other applications – both quickly and without great expense. This means that our customers are well-equipped for future requirements.”
