Production
In 2018, production output was markedly higher than the year before, whereas production costs were down 3.1 percent. Overall capacity utilization at the chemical divisions was roughly 90 percent. At WACKER POLYSILICON, we sold lower quantities than a year earlier, one reason being the shutdown at Charleston. The Charleston site resumed production in May 2018.
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% |
Plant Utilization Rate |
|
|---|---|---|
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WACKER SILICONES |
96 |
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WACKER POLYMERS |
89 |
|
WACKER POLYSILICON |
100 |
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Capital expenditures for 2018 amounted to €460.9 million (2017: €326.8 million). Maintenance costs totaled around €480 million.
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Location |
Projects |
Year |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
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Adrian, Michigan, USA |
Discontinuous emulsion plant |
2018 |
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Burghausen |
Production facility for non-postcuring liquid silicone rubbers |
2018 |
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León, Spain |
Cysteine plant |
2018 |
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Jincheon, South Korea |
New production facility for RTV silicone compounds |
2018 |
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Nanjing, China |
Capacity extension for VAE dispersions |
2018 |
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Priorities of Productivity Program
The ongoing Wacker Operating System (WOS) program helps us boost productivity along the entire value chain. The most important goal is to continue reducing specific operating costs each year. In 2018, we worked on approximately 600 projects, some 400 of which concerned operations. The projects focused on improving raw-material yields and specific energy consumption. The WOS ACADEMY held 12 courses to train some 100 employees in the use of productivity methods such as Six Sigma and LEAN.