Lyocell in Lenzing Annual Reports (2000)

The 2000 Lenzing annual report was dominated by the images of Naomi Campbell who had starred in their new advertising campaign and who may have been partly responsible for improved sales.  The paragraphs most relevant to lyocell follow:

Lyocell business activities were very good. In fiscal  2000 sales almost tripled, as compared to the year  before. The results are still negative, but have  clearly improved over 1999.  This growth is due to an optimized type mix, on  the one hand, and to an intensive worldwide  marketing strategy, on the other.  

The production facilities at Heiligenkreuz, where  the production capacity was expanded in June to amount to 20,000 tonnes, worked to capacity and  are being stepped up continuously. In parallel,  minor de-bottlenecking investments improved the  performance of the plant.The production  capacity was increased to 20,000 tonnes  per year in June 2000. After almost two years of  reviewing, the EU Commission confirmed that the  entire package of grants for the Lyocell plant at  Heiligenkreuz, Austria, is in full compliance with  the EU cartel-law provisions.

For the new fiber advertising line, we succeeded in  signing up Naomi Campbell, the world-famous  super model. She is to promote with and familiarize  the end user with Viscose, Modal and Lyocell - our  fibers made of timber, the natural raw material.  In addition to fibers - our core business - Lenzing  Plastics, Lenzing Technik and the paper division  also made major contributions to sales and results.  In the year 2000, our employees had - for the first  time - the opportunity to share in the success of  the company through a new success-oriented  payment scheme. Thus also our employees  benefitted from the good results.   

"ProViscose" - a blend of Lyocell and Viscose -  showed a positive development. This fiber blend  did not only boost sales of Lyocell, but also helped  Lenzing set a new quality standard for the viscose  segment by clearly improved product characteristics.  On account of the combination, the specific features  of both fiber types can implement their full  potential. As a result, product and care features,  such as dimensional stability, have been clearly  improved. After initial successes with bed linen  and terrycloth items, the home-textile applications  will be expanded. In addition, there are plans for  Lyocell to be used for nonwovens applications, a  market segment with great potential. 

The Lyocell LF fiber, launched in the fall of 2000,  opens up new product applications. The demand  for nonwovens fibers and ProViscose is moving in  the right direction.     

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Lenzing Lyocell Expands its Capacity (2000)

There is a growing demand worldwide for Lyocell fibers. In June 2000 the production capacity of the Lyocell plant at Heiligenkreuz was therefore expanded to 20,000 tonnes per year instead of the originally installed 12,000 tonnes per year. The company is already considering a further increase in capacity. As compared to the first semester 1999, the result of Lenzing Lyocell has clearly improved, but it is still negative. The combination of the successful implementation of our marketing strategy, the introduction of new products and the favorable market development should make it possible to achieve our earnings targets at a faster pace.

After a nearly two-year audit by the EU Commission, every single item of the whole package of grants to the Lyocell plant at Heiligenkreuz was approved as being in full conformity with EU competition rules.

Source: Lenzing

Lenzing and Acordis postpone discussions on US joint venture (2000)

Wednesday, 16. August 2000

The planned alliance for viscose staple in the US between Lenzing and Acordis is more complex than it at first appeared.

In view of this the management of Lenzing and Acordis have agreed to postpone further talks on a US viscose staple joint venture to a later stage.

No further details are disclosed.

Source: Lenzing