Alkegen Invests in Needlefelt Equipment

Alkegen has completed an investment of approximately €1.5 million ($1.7 million) in dedicated production equipment at its manufacturing site in Fulda, Germany, strengthening the plant’s needlefelt nonwovens capability for technical and industrial applications.

The centerpiece of the Fulda investment is a new elliptical pre-needle loom installed on an existing needlefelt line. The machine enables tighter control of web elongation in the machine and cross directions, supporting more isotropic felt structures than the previous equipment allowed.

Early production data from Fulda shows a clear step-up in line performance of around 20%. Yield has improved by approximately two to three percentage points, and energy use per kilogram of fiber processed is estimated to be 15% lower.

The new pre-needle unit also delivers greater process stability than the legacy loom, reducing the risk of hydraulic oil contamination and cutting unplanned downtime linked to leakage. Combined with improved process stability, the plant reports an uplift in overall equipment effectiveness on the upgraded line.

Importantly for customers in heavy technical markets, the investment extends the weight range the line can serve. Where the previous configuration was limited on very heavy constructions, the Fulda team can now target needlefelt up to approximately 4,000g/m², opening additional demand in applications within the steel-industry and other applications where there are requirements for high-basis-weight technical felt.

Fulda produces needlefelt nonwovens from staple fibers sourced globally. Polymer capability includes standard polyester and polypropylene as well as more demanding fibers such as preox, polyimide, PTFE and aramid grades. 

In addition to flexibility switching across fiber types, the upgraded line is also designed to switch across fiber lengths and target constructions, supporting applications that span industrial filtration, fire protection, acoustics, construction and architecture, white goods, PPE-related materials and other engineered nonwoven uses. Alkegen can now serve well over 100 end-use pathways for its technical felt capabilities.

Project management, installation support and integration into the existing line were led on site at Fulda by Alkegen’s local operations, maintenance and engineering teams. The investment sits alongside continuous operational improvement programs at the site that demonstrate the team’s ongoing commitment to delivering best practice across production, quality and maintenance.

Discussing the Fulda program, Peter Keck, senior business development manager at Alkegen, says: “This is about giving our customers confidence that we will keep investing in the capability behind their supply. Technical felt is not a single-spec product. Customers need range, consistency and the ability to move with the market. The new pre-needle loom helps us run faster, waste less fiber and open weight and property windows we could not serve as well before.

“The upgrade is part of a broader commitment from Alkegen to needlefelt manufacturing at a time when technical nonwovens customers are looking for secure regional capacity, tighter process control and materials that can meet increasingly specific mechanical and environmental requirements.”

John Lewis, director global sales at Alkegen, adds: “Our manufacturing sites at Fulda and in the U.S. both pioneered membrane felt composites and now provide a diverse range of filter media and technical fabric to customers around the world – this investment represents the importance of the future of felts in the modern world.”

Alkegen manufactures advanced fiber and filtration materials for industrial and specialty applications worldwide. The Fulda site is a key European location for nonwovens production, along with sites across the U.K., France, Germany and Czechia.