MetoKote Corporation Opens New European Regional Coating Center
German Facility Will Support John Deere Tractor Production and Other Regional Coating Needs
MANNHEIM, Germany, June 16, 2010 — MetoKote Corporation unveiled today its latest regional coating center in the state of Baden-Württemberg, Germany, during a ceremony for customers, industry leaders, government officials, and members of the media.
The EUR 6.5 million (USD 9.5 million) equipped facility, located in the Friesenheimer Insel area of Mannheim, Germany, will begin production on July 12, 2010; supplying electro-deposition coating (e-coat) on tractor components for Germany's leading manufacturer of agricultural equipment, John Deere.
"The opening of this facility supports our company's long-term strategic objective of growing in global markets where our strategic customers compete," said DeWayne Pinkstaff, MetoKote president and CEO. "MetoKote's is extremely pleased to be able to open our first regional coating center in Germany in support of John Deere."
Strategically located approximately nine kilometers (5.5 miles) from John Deere's European headquarters and tractor assembly facility, MetoKote's 11,500 square meter (near 124,000 square foot) site features an advanced e-coat operation, capable of coating multiple substrates including steel, and aluminum and iron castings. The line's all-spray, zinc phosphate pretreatment, and 61.6 cubic meter (17,000 gallon) e-coat tanks are able to process components up to 0.91M x 1.83M x 3.5M (3' x 6' x 11.5') in size and transport them through the line by way of its "power-and-free," non-synchronized, overhead conveyer system. Uniquely, the cathodic e-coating system has two-color capability. Maximum coating capacity for the line is 2.2 million square meters (23.7 million square feet) per year. At full capacity the facility can employ up to 50 team members.
MetoKote's Mannheim coating operation meets all required environmental compliance regulations with its own integrated waste-water treatment center that can process six cubic meters (1,585 gallons) of water per shift. An inherently eco-friendly process, e-coating reclaims 98% of its material, returning it back to the operation. The facility also boasts a solar panel roof which will return 0.18 megawatts of electricity back to the Mannheim grid on an annual basis.
"The Mannheim regional coating center is a factual demonstration of how MetoKote continues to be a leader in the coating industry. Employing our lead-to-launch program management process, and coating solutions expertise, we opened this facility on schedule, installed a modern, in-house-designed e-coat line, and incorporated our own proprietary quality and process control systems," continued Pinkstaff.
Integrated into the facility's coating operations is MetoKote's value-added SecureKoteSM technologies including its internally developed part inventory tracking software (MITS2) and remote process control monitoring system, which is capable of tracking hundreds of coating process attributes by stage, specified interval, and specification limits, with automated electronic reporting and alert functions.
The facility begins initial operations in support of John Deere; however, MetoKote will expand its coating services by supplying e-coat to other customers in the region. MetoKote has access to an additional 12,500 square meters (three acres) of land for future expansion.