In order to advance its market integration as a system supplier while securing future growth, Rehau AG + Co (D-95104 Rehau; www.rehau.de) has established a new “medical competence centre” at Münchberg / Helmbrechts in southern Germany. In the first construction stage, the new facility for medical engineering products will have a production floor space of about 8,000 m² to 10,000 m². Over the next several years, the 100-member core medical production team working at Rehau will be expanded to 250 employees, all working at the new site. Construction is planned to start in spring of 2004 and capital expenditure for the first stage is estimated at EUR 15m.

According to Rehau, the modular construction of the production halls allows a successive expansion of the facility. In the final stages, the complex is planned to contain production and storage halls, energy areas, workshops, mould making shops, offices, a laboratory as well as conference and training rooms. In addition to the production itself, the building will house special departments such as marketing, sales, application technology, process engineering and R&D.

The company has been producing medical engineering components of the “Raumedic” brand for almost 50 years. In addition to the traditional tubing systems, Rehau produces multi-lumen tubes, micro tubes and multi-layer tubes. The company also operates in the areas of “Components” (catheter technology, precision injection moulding, 2K injection moulding and sterile medical devices) and “Systems” (diagnostic and therapeutic pressure gauge catheters ).