Layher builds new factory

System scaffolding manufacturer Wilhelm Layher GmbH & Co. KG broke ground in November for a new plant in Güglingen near Stuttgart, Germany. It will make all the company's aluminium and wooden components.

The new facility will comprise three production buildings, four warehouses, and an office building - totalling 32000 m² -- on 6.8 hectares of land. Planned production start is September 2009.

Georg Layher, representing the company's managing partners, said, "With this expansion of our premises, we are making a clear commitment to Germany as a business location, because 'Made by Layher' continues to mean for us 'Made in Germany'."

Production of steel components will remain at the main plant, whose capacity is also expanding, in nearby Eibensbach. That increase includes a new materials receiving point, an expansion of steel deck production capacity, and a new hot-dip galvanizing facility, to start in early 2009.

Layher said the capacity expansions will allow its customers to order scaffolding ‘just in time'. It expects this flexibility to give it "...the crucial competitive lead in this market."

The company, founded in 1945, is one of Europe's largest manufacturers of system scaffolding. It has 1100 employees, including 400 in 30 subsidiaries on five continents.