Anniversary of Substrates Plant and Grand Opening of Filter Facility
CORNING, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Corning Incorporated (NYSE: GLW) today hosted a ceremony to recognize two of its emissions control facilities in Kaiserslautern, Germany. Company leadership, local government officials, and customers gathered at the Corning Kaiserslautern Diesel Manufacturing Facility to celebrate its grand opening. They also commemorated the 25th anniversary of the Kaiserslautern Main Plant.
The Corning Kaiserslautern Diesel Manufacturing Facility manufactures Corning DuraTrap® AT filters for light-duty diesel applications. The plant began shipping product to customers in Europe and around the world in the third quarter of this year.
The grand opening occurs one year after the company announced a $44 million investment to build the state-of-the-art facility which is located near customers in Europe. This location provides customers with significant advantages, including shorter delivery times, reduced inventory costs, lower transportation costs, and improved service.
Corning also celebrated the 25th anniversary of the Kaiserslautern Main Plant, which manufactures advanced substrates for light-duty vehicles. Corning broke ground on the facility in 1985 and began shipping products a year later. Since then, the company has continued to invest in the facility, its employees, and the business.
"Today's event underscores Corning's ongoing commitment to providing leading-edge emissions-control products to our customers around the world," said Corning Chairman and CEO Wendell P. Weeks. "Corning has a long history of creating clean-air solutions, including 25 years of manufacturing here in Kaiserslautern to meet the needs of our European customers. As the automotive market grows and global regulations tighten, we continue to respond with innovations that enable Corning to capture strategic growth opportunities, while helping solve some of our customers' most difficult problems."
Corning's world-class research and development, engineering, manufacturing, sales, and marketing expertise supports a vehicle market that is expected to grow from 75 million in 2011 to more than 100 million vehicles by 2016. As vehicle production increases, so does demand for Corning light-duty emissions control products.
"Europe is the leader in light-duty diesel vehicles where Euro 5 regulations require every vehicle to have a filter," said Mark A. Beck, senior vice president and general manager of Corning Environmental Technologies. "Our new facility, along with Corning's other emissions control plants in South Africa and North America, will help us meet the increasing demand for our clean air products. In addition, we are currently expanding our light-duty substrates business in Asia. We expect these significant investments to enable us to support our customers' growth objectives."
In addition to increased vehicle production and a growing market, the emissions control business is driven by strict emissions standards. As global regulations tighten, vehicle manufacturers are required to use more, and advanced, substrates in each vehicle. To help meet this growing substrate demand, Corning recently announced two expansions at its Corning Shanghai Company Limited (CSCL) plant in Shanghai, China. The expansions are expected to be complete in the second half of 2012 and the third quarter of 2013.
Forward-Looking and Cautionary Statements
This press release contains "forward-looking statements" (within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995), which are based on current expectations and assumptions about Corning's financial results and business operations, that involve substantial risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially. These risks and uncertainties include: the effect of global political, economic and business conditions; conditions in the financial and credit markets; currency fluctuations; tax rates; product demand and industry capacity; competition; reliance on a concentrated customer base; manufacturing efficiencies; cost reductions; availability of critical components and materials; new product commercialization; pricing fluctuations and changes in the mix of sales between premium and non-premium products; new plant start-up or restructuring costs; possible disruption in commercial activities due to terrorist activity, armed conflict, political or financial instability, natural disasters, adverse weather conditions, or major health concerns; adequacy of insurance; equity company activities; acquisition and divestiture activities; the level of excess or obsolete inventory; the rate of technology change; the ability to enforce patents; product and components performance issues; retention of key personnel; stock price fluctuations; and adverse litigation or regulatory developments. These and other risk factors are detailed in Corning's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the day that they are made, and Corning undertakes no obligation to update them in light of new information or future events.
About Corning Incorporated
Corning Incorporated (www.corning.com) is the world leader in specialty glass and ceramics. Drawing on 160 years of materials science and process engineering knowledge, Corning creates and makes keystone components that enable high-technology systems for consumer electronics, mobile emissions control, telecommunications and life sciences. Our products include glass substrates for LCD televisions, computer monitors and laptops; ceramic substrates and filters for mobile emission control systems; optical fiber, cable, hardware & equipment for telecommunications networks; optical biosensors for drug discovery; and other advanced optics and specialty glass solutions for a number of industries including semiconductor, aerospace, defense, astronomy and metrology.
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