Trelleborg makes printing blanket investment in Brazil

Trelleborg is creating a new printing blanket manufacturing facility in Brazil in order to tap into growth in the graphic arts in the region and provide it with a dedicated local presence.

Trelleborg manufactures the Vulcan and Rollin range of printing blankets, which are offset printing blankets for the packaging, web, sheet-fed, newspaper, business forms and metal decorating markets.

The new Trelleborg Printing Blankets facility is located in Santana de Parnaiba, near São Paulo. Trelleborg will invest in production capacity during 2011 and 2012. It is anticipated that production will begin gradually by the first half of 2012.

It is part of a series of investments in the region, including a new facility for offshore equipment. These new facilities add to Trelleborg’s already strong presence in Brazil where, last year, through its Trelleborg Engineered Systems business area, Trelleborg acquired a business that focuses on specially designed oil hoses for surface and deep-sea applications located in Santana de Parnaiba. Trelleborg Printing Blankets will be co-located alongside this facility.

Trelleborg said South America is a high priority for its business and will be a focus for future growth initiatives.

Peter Nilsson (pictured, above), Trelleborg president and chief executive officer, said: ‘With markets such as oil and gas, infrastructure, agriculture, mining and graphics all growing at a rapid rate, Brazil has quickly become a hotbed of activity for a number of our business areas. As such, we’ve made a group commitment to increase our presence and customer support in this key region.

‘Our investments, including the opening of new manufacturing facilities across the county, will continue to bring us closer to the action in our chosen market sectors, as well as to our existing customer base and prospects. On-the-ground production and technical support, something our customers have come to know and expect from the Trelleborg brand, will expand.’

Nilsson added: ‘We have strong growth ambitions for Brazil and the country is quickly becoming an increasingly important market for our business and we will soon have more than 1,000 employees across our various businesses in the region, and thanks to the continued and dedicated investment that is being made by the organization, the outlook is excellent.’