WITTMANN opens expanded production plant in China

Together with 250 customers and partners, in mid-December, the WITTMANN Group celebrated the opening of its expanded production plant Kunshan in China. The expansion was completed just in time for the site's 20th anniversary. With this investment, the group is setting the course for the future. In addition to robots and auxiliaries, injection molding machines will now also be produced locally in China.

 
“Our new plant represents WITTMANN's transformation from a component supplier to a full-service systems solution provider,” emphasizes Kevin Wang, General Manager of WITTMANN Kunshan and WITTMANN BATTENFELD Shanghai. “We can now offer our customers here in China and Asia integrated systems solutions from a single source that are produced entirely locally. Our customers benefit from shorter delivery times and the cost advantages of local production.”

The guests were impressed by the modern production plant and large technical center, which was equipped with the first injection molding machine exhibits for the opening ceremony. The technical center and the new modern training area will be used more intensively for events and interdisciplinary project work in the future.  
Initially, machine production in China will focus on the all-electric EcoPrimus injection molding machine with a clamping force of 100 tons, which was presented for the first time at K 2025. “The goal is to build 100 EcoPrimus 100 machines in China next year,” said Dr. Werner Wittmann, founder and owner of the WITTMANN Group, in his welcoming speech during the opening ceremony.  

Production capacity doubled
The robotics and auxiliary divisions are also benefiting from the plant expansion. Over¬all, production capacity has been doubled. The expansion adds more than 10,000 square meters of additional floor space, 6,500 square meters for production and 3,500 square meters in the new office building. A total of 13,000 square meters of production space is now available. It is not just the floor space that has been increased. All pro¬cesses and workflows have been optimized with a view to greater efficiency. The various production areas, such as mechanical processing, assembly and painting, are networked. 

With the founding of WITTMANN Kunshan 20 years ago, WITTMANN initially brought robot production to China. “Today, we are one of the leading European robot suppliers in the Chinese plastics industry,” says Dr. Wittmann. “This success is the result of lea¬ding technology that is produced locally in Asia at competitive costs. We are now pursuing this strategy with the EcoPrimus injection molding machines.”

Respond more flexibly and quickly
In the future, China will be not only a production location for WITTMANN, but also a development location. Guests at the opening ceremony were given a preview of the new R&D Center. “With our own development, we can respond more flexibly and quickly to the specific requirements here in China and Asia,” says Wang, who has his sights set on various target markets, including packaging, medical devices, automotive, and home appliances. 

WITTMANN has been present in China with its own sales and service subsidiary since 2001. The company has been producing robots at its Kunshan site since 2005, fol¬lowed shortly thereafter by temperature control units, conveying units, compact dryers, and granulators for the local markets. In 2021, WITTMANN set another milestone in China with the opening of another sales and service center in Dongguan in the south of the country.