Austrian-based sheet material manufacturer Egger has started production at its new state-of-the-art chipboard plant in Biskupiec in north-east Poland.
Egger has invested €440 million (£358.9m) in the new factory, which is its 19th plant worldwide. It has a capacity to produce 650,000cu m of boards a year.
The new plant employs 400 staff directly and has created 600 indirect jobs with local suppliers and service providers.
Egger said that the new factory has been built in accordance with EU BAT (Best Available Techniques) regulations, which stipulate the use of the best available technology to minimise emissions that may impact on the environment.
Egger co-owner Michael Egger said: “I am delighted that we have started production at our Biskupiec plant and, together with our management team and employees, we are honoured to become an important supplier to the Polish furniture industry. We’ve been active in Poland since the early 1990s, and are successfully working with more than 150 local customers.”
He added: “We are also proud to contribute to local development in the Warmia-Masuria region by offering almost 1,000 jobs during the construction and now, when operating.”
The new plant has production lines for raw and laminated chipboard and production is being slowly ramped up step by step towards its annual production capacity of 650,000 cu m of board – a large proportion of which, Egger said, will be finished with decorative surfaces.