August 5, 2010

Topping-out ceremony in Bitterfeld: construction of the new membrane filtration technology plant is proceeding according to plan

It is one of the current lighthouse projects of the group: LANXESS is building a new plant for membrane filtration technology at its site in Bitterfeld. Last Friday, the topping-out ceremony for the approximately 30-million-euro water treatment plant took place. “In only four months, construction has progressed so far that we can celebrate the topping-out ceremony today”, Frank Zimmermann, technical project manager of the Business Unit Ion Exchange Resins (BU ION), said. “I am happy about the good cooperation and I am convinced that we are going to successfully continue with the advancement of this trend-setting project.” In addition to the staff of BU ION and IAB Ionenaustauscher GmbH, many staff members of the companies involved in the construction had been invited to this event.

LANXESS already has the largest and world’s most modern ion exchange plant for monodisperse Lewatit® ion exchange technology in Bitterfeld. With the new plant, the company will enter a new business segment for water treatment.

“The swift implementation of the construction shows once again that the decision to choose the site in Bitterfeld was correct”, Dr. Gerold Schade, Managing Director of IAB explained. “IAB Ionenaustauscher GmbH, which is a 100 percent subsidiary of the LANXESS group and belongs to BU ION, has a long tradition here. Also in the internal competition of LANXESS, Bitterfeld prevailed over other locations such as Spain and Singapore, not least because of its existing expertise.”

Following the official topping-out ceremony speech and the traditional placing of the topping-out wreath, the guests headed for an “on-site inspection”. Guided by Martin Röttering, site manager of the company Mainka, the visitors got a first impression of the future production plant.

“Usable water is becoming a scarce and thus more and more valuable resource throughout the world. Thanks to this investment in Bitterfeld, which was groundbreaking for LANXESS, we are now able to offer additional water treatment products and thus further strengthen our already strong position in the market”, Dr. Axel C. Heitmann, Chairman of the Board of Management of LANXESS AG, said during a press conference on the occasion of the ground-breaking ceremony in Bitterfeld on January 21.