Bar raised for barrier technology
At its factory in Hamburg, KHS is investing in a new production shop for its internationally established Plasmax barrier technology – in a clear sign of commitment to its production locations in Germany and further growth. The groundbreaking ceremony took place at the end of May 2026.
The market for Plasmax coating machines from KHS is booming: over the past five years, demand for equipment in the InnoPET FreshSafe series has quadrupled. This pioneering barrier technology has long been a key growth driver for the corporate success of the entire KHS Group. It’s thus no surprise that the systems manufacturer is now expanding its capacities at the Hamburg PET competence center by constructing a new production shop.
Next door to the existing factory premises, the new, 4,300-square-meter building is to be erected by spring 2027. In the future, it will house all barrier technology departments under one roof – from Development and Production through Assembly to Sales and Commissioning. This makes for shorter distances and optimized processes.
“The adapted assembly process shortens lead times and machine occupancy times. This means we can deliver to our customers even faster.”
Head of the Large Machine Product Division, KHS Dortmund
Optimized assembly, faster delivery
The latter particularly applies to Assembly. Instead of building entire machines all in one place, the company has opted for a modular pre-assembly setup. Individual assemblies will be mounted in parallel at defined workstations and tested – and only then assembled to create a full machine. “This allows us to work on several modules at the same time which can then be better subjected to preliminary testing,” explains Dr. Joachim Konrad, head of the Large Machine Product Division at KHS. “Adapted to the improved space conditions, these processes shorten lead times and machine occupancy times in the shop. This means we can deliver to our customers even faster.”
The laboratory area, where new coatings are developed and coated containers tested, also benefits: a paternoster system now permits bottle batches to be automatically stored and retrieved using a code. In addition, bottle and temporary storage units are being moved closer to the laboratory and production areas.
When finished, through the use of green electricity and a photovoltaic system the new building will be completely carbon neutral in its operation. This will be further supported by a closed heating circuit with heat pumps and heat recovered from the coating machine cooling circuits.
