As the demand for the meltblown nonwovens
fabric currently produced in the R&D center exceeds the production volume
of the pilot lines many times over, Reifenhäuser Reicofil announced that the
materials now only supplied to manufacturers of masks for medical facilities
and care services in the German market.
In an earlier press release, Reifenhäuser
announced the availability of the material after no customers in Germany or
Europe could be found at the beginning of the nonwoven production despite great
efforts. Customers in Germany have been found since then. The material is also supplied
to public or charitable initiatives that manually produce face masks for medical
practices, hospitals and care services.
Dr. Bernd Kunze, Managing Director of
Reifenhäuser Reicofil, explained the development: “Within the last two weeks,
many initiatives have been founded that sew masks by hand. Thus, at least small
production capacities have been established in Germany within a very short
time, which now want to be supplied. From the many inquiries we have very
consciously selected those initiatives that work efficiently and deliver masks
quickly and reliably first to where they are most urgently needed”.
Independent supply chains needed in Europe
For Reifenhäuser, the delivery to manually
operating converters remains only a partial success. If the population is to be
supplied with masks nationwide, the demand would rise into the billions.
Bernd Reifenhäuser, CEO of the Reifenhäuser
Group, said: “We need a strategic production reserve for medical protective
clothing in Europe. We have to quickly build up the machine capacity for the
industrial production of masks in high volumes, but at the same time, the
corresponding capacities for the production of the necessary high-quality
nonwovens in Europe must be created.”
In order to accelerate the process in
Germany, politicians have set up a program to secure industrial investments
through purchase and price commitments. This commitment will initially be valid
until the end of 2021.
Reifenhäuser considers the measure to be
important and correct, but also sees the need for further fine-tuning. Bernd
Reifenhäuser said: “In our view, the duration of the program should be
extended. By the end of 2021, high-quality machines that we need to ensure
quality and long-term international competitiveness will not have amortized. It
would also be helpful to make a supplementary statement on the total annual
demand for protective clothing, similar to what Macron has already done for
France. We should definitely make use of possible synergies in Europe.”