Web Industries is a textbook example of a successful American start-up company. Founded in 1969 by Bob Fulton with $10,000, a machine in a basement and a paper slitting job, Web Industries has continuously invested in the people, technology and knowledge necessary to remain a leader in flexible material product development and manufacturing for the consumer, medical, composite and wire and cable markets.

In the 1990s, as the use of nonwoven materials in disposable products grew, Web Industries expanded into this area through new construction and acquisition. The key purchase of KT Industries in Fort Wayne, IN, added capacity and expertise right as nonwoven products were becoming more complex and cost-sensitive. 

“Because Web Industries bridges the gap between material suppliers and end-product manufacturers, we are in the unique position of being able to suggest materials and manufacturing methods that will allow companies to get their ideas off of the drawing board, through the product development process and into commercial-scale production quickly,” says Claudio Hanna, director of business development for Consumer Products.

Web Industries currently operates five locations in North America and recently opened its first European facility—dedicated exclusively to composites—in Stade, Germany. The company strives to make new investment and knowledge acquisition a continuous process.

Throughout all of this, the company has stayed true to its roots, offering precision slitting and spooling of nonwovens, films, papers, foams, foils and custom laminates for years. “As markets matured and the needs of our partners evolved, we’ve moved into providing higher-value manufacturing services, such as printing, adhesive and ultrasonic lamination, ultrasonic pattern embossing and multi-layer assembly to combine several processes into a single finished product,” Hanna says.

Because many of its manufacturing and converting solutions give Web Industries’ partners and their products real competitive advantages in the marketplace, much of the company’s work is covered by non-disclosure agreements that prevent executives from talking in detail. However, in broad terms, Hanna would say his company participates in many different disposable and medical hygiene markets including medical devices, wound care, feminine hygiene, baby care, adult incontinence, health and beauty care and home care.

“If you look at Web Industries as a whole, though, in all of the markets that we serve and in all of the products that we’re involved in, we are confident in saying that we can be found in nearly every home in the U.S.,” he adds. “We are one of the companies driving several key product launches in 2012—launches involving products that range in size and diversity from commercial aircraft to small wound care applications, and many of these new products feature innovative market-changing technologies that Web Industries developed in-house.”

Long-term relationships are the bread and butter of the company’s success. One of the company’s core values states that relationships are the essence of life, and that belief guides the company’s business practices on a daily basis. “We want our customers to be our partners and not just a faceless set of invoices passing back and forth,” Hanna explains. “There is a real energy that exists when companies are open and honest and working together on mutual goals; we thrive on that energy and work to bring it into every product and every project that we work on.”

In summary, Web Industries’ background in flexible materials and history of connecting material suppliers with end-product manufacturers puts the company in a very unique position: its knowledge and experience base is applicable to both existing markets looking to modernize and emerging markets looking to go mainstream. As new technologies and new market needs emerge, the company will target the opportunities that are a good fit.

“We’re experienced working with a wide range of materials, and our converting and manufacturing lines can take those materials and do just about anything with them that we’re asked to do. If a manufacturing challenge exceeds our existing knowledge, we’ll work with our partners to invent the future together,” Hanna says.

Contact Information:
377 Simarano Drive, Suite 220
Marlborough, MA 01752
Phone: +1 508-573-7979
Fax: +1 260-435-4399
[email protected] 
www.webindustries.com