Hexcel has officially opened its new carbon fiber plant at the Les Roches-Roussillon chemicals industry platform in Isère, France. The new €200 million, 37-acre plant will be used to make carbon fiber and PAN precursor.
According to the company, the new plant will generate 120 direct jobs and 250 indirect positions, increasing Hexcel’s workforce in France to 1,200 people with more than 1,000 employees located in the Auvergne/Rhône-Alpes region.
It will operate with Hexcel’s existing sites in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, Les Avenières, the biggest carbon fiber weaving plant in Europe, and Dagneux, manufacturer of prepreg fabrics and carbon fibers allowing it to cover the production chain from carbon fiber to resin-impregnated fabrics.
‘We have met the challenges of constructing and transferring PAN and carbon fiber manufacturing technology from our American sites to France, and we are able to respond to the needs of aerospace customers and their growing demand for carbon composite materials,’ said Thierry Merlot, Hexcel president.
Hexcel also plans to launch a 3,500m2 R&D center at the Les Avenières site scheduled for the first quarter of 2019 with a focus on new processes and out of autoclave technologies.
This story is reprinted from material from Hexcel, with editorial changes made by Materials Today. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily represent those of Elsevier.
