State-of-the art coating technology and future-oriented focus
The new painting centre at the Schwandorf site provides state-of-the-art technology for liquid and powder coatings. The plants have been designed for high capacities and sustainability.
In May 2022, the construction works for the new painting centre at the Schwandorf site started. On an area of 12,000 m2 HORSCH built a hall with state-of-the-art coating technology for liquid and power coating to meet the increased capacity requirements of the past years and to prepare for the future.
In January 2023, the installation of the liquid and powder coating plants began. The liquid coating plant went into operation in June 2023, the powder coating plant started in September 2023. At the moment, the plants still are in the run-up phase. The maximum capacity amounts to around 575,000 m2 of painted material per year which corresponds to approx. 20,000 t.
Components up to a length of 9 m, a width of 2.3 m, a height of 3 m and a total load of 3 t can be painted in the new plants. Fully automatic, flexible conveyor systems ensure that the components approach their targets with pinpoint precision making processes faster, more efficient and safer.
With around 30 million Euros, the construction of the painting centre is one of the biggest investments at the Schwandorf Site. “In terms of capacity, the painting centre has been designed in such a way that we will also be able to easily handle further growth and development steps of the company”, Philipp Horsch describes the idea behind it.
Focus on sustainability
Energy efficiency and sustainability played a major role in the realisation of this project. For powder coating which accounts for 80 %, HORSCH relies on a particularly environmentally friendly process which is completely solvent-free: “In the past 30 years, we mainly used solvent based paints here in Schwandorf. Now we opted for another approach. Today, the focus at all sites is on powder coating“, Philipp Horsch explains.
The processes, too, were optimised: “In the new painting centre, we raised the pre-treatment to a new level. We can now also work with strong acid. This means with the spraying method, corroded parts will become completely clean. This improved pre-treatment increases the quality of the paint”, Philipp Horsch adds. The process takes place in a closed cycle. The waste water that is produced is not fed into the public network but is recycled independently. Moreover, these systems also reduce energy consumption significantly.
During the planning phase, the focus always was on the employees. Numerous automated processes and individual adaption options for the workplaces contribute to an improvement of ergonomics. Swell hoses that are distributed in the hall ensure a comfortable air exchange.
Due to the combination of state-of-the-art technology and the newly created work environment that is customised to the employees, the 75 new vacancies were filled quickly.