Pilkington to invest US$ 82.4 million in the country
Valor Econômico
Pilkington, one of the largest manufacturers of car glass, will resume the project of expansion of the plant of Caçapava (SP), suspended in the end of 2008 because of economic crisis, with more investments than originally foreseen. The company will now increase the productive capacity of both laminated glass (used in windshields) and tempered glass (used in car windows), in view of the positive prognosis for the Brazilian car industry. The investments, initially estimated at R$ 105 million (US$ 61.8 million), were increased to R$ 140 million (US$ 82.4 million). "It's a great demonstration of the trust of our Japanese headquarters has in the local operation", says automotive regional officer of Pilkington for South America, Aguinaldo Balata.
In the first phase of the project, the productive capacity of windshields at the São Paulo plant shall be increased from 2.5 million units to 3.7 million parts a year, as of February 2011. In the second stage, scheduled to start in February or March 2012, another 7.5 million windows a year will be added to the current production of 19 million units. The production line of rear-window panes, also of tempered glass, will not receive investments. "The current capacity of nearly 4.5 million units is sufficient to meet the demand", says Balata. Pilkington holds nearly 50% of the national market and its main rival is the French Saint-Gobain Sekurit.
Besides delivering its products directly to the makers, Pilkington is present in the aftermarket and it exports to Europe and the United States nearly 5% of the volume it produces. After the improvements, the exported volume should correspond to 10% of the sales. The project foresees the construction of a new line in the Caçapava complex and the opening of nearly 200 jobs. Pilkington operates another two glass plants aimed at the car industry in the country, one in Betim (MG) and another in Camaçari (BA), and a unit of glass for construction, in São Paulo (SP).