Business Profile - Growth Strategies

Growth Strategies

The NSG Group is continuing with the strategy of pursuing carefully selected opportunities for profitable growth in Flat Glass. Recent growth strategies have fallen into three broad categories. Examples of each are listed below.

Growth of Existing Products in Established Markets

The NSG Group’s second float line in Vietnam started production in 2008.
The Group has announced plans for a significant expansion of its Automotive glazing capacity in Brazil, with the construction of an additional windshield production line adjacent to its existing facilities at Caçapava, near São Paulo. The total investment will be around euro 43 million, with the new production unit adding capacity of over 1 million windshields per year.
Investments have been completed in Pilkington Automotive's plant in Sandomierz, Poland, to provide additional capacity and capability to manufacture the range of value-enhancing products required by VMs.
Pilkington Automotive’s Specialised Transport business, supplying glazing systems to buses trucks, trains and ships, continues to grow market share in a sector in which the Group is already a world market leader.
The Group has announced the start of construction of a float line in Colombia, in partnership with Saint Gobain. The new plant will supply markets in Colombia, Venezuela and Ecuador.

New Products and Value Chain Growth

A new Solar Energy business unit has been created within Building Products to capitalise on the growing demand for glass in photovoltaics.
The Group’s range of on-line coated TEC glasses has been significantly expanded to serve more effectively the rapidly growing photovoltaic sector.
Construction on a new rolled glass line JV with China Glass Holdings in Taicang, China has been completed.
Sales of a new composition of low-iron float glass, specially developed for the photovoltaic market, are also rising rapidly.
New solar control variants of Pilkington Activ™ glass have been introduced and are capturing a large share of the high-value UK conservatory glazing market.
Introduction of laminated side-glazings, a new added-value automotive product which is increasingly being specified in both ‘top of the range’ and medium-sized family vehicles. Latterly, Pilkington Automotive has also developed a thinner, lighter-weight laminated product, which will help to promote product adoption in smaller vehicles.
In 2008, the Group’s float plant at Weiherhammer in southern Germany underwent a cold repair, during which the capacity of the furnace was enlarged and its on-line coating capability enhanced.
Pilkington Automotive's continued investment in leading edge technologies, including shaping, solar control and weight reduction, enables it to benefit from this added value growth. Its supply of, lightweight, large area, high-performance, laminated rooflights, is a good illustration.
Pilkington Automotive continues to develop new added-value glazing systems and modular assemblies, facilitating vehicle styling, functionality and assembly.
Pilkington Automotive has benefited from value chain growth in its OE business, with its increasing focus on full service supply.
Pilkington Automotive works closely with the VMs on glazing design, development, manufacture, delivery and assembly, often taking responsibility for activities previously undertaken by the VMs.

Geographic Expansion

The Group’s first Automotive plant in India has been constructed at Vizag in southern India and started production at the end of 2008. The plant will initially concentrate on the production of aftermarket (AGR) parts for export.
A new low iron rolled line in Taicang China started production in June 2008. This is operated by a 50:50 joint venture between the NSG Group and China Glass Holdings (CGH).
The purchase in 2007 of GIMA, a leading supplier of automotive aftermarket glazing with operations in Hungary and Romania has further enhanced Pilkington Automotive’s European AGR network.
CGH completed the acquisition of Blue Star Glass and Beijing Glass in early 2007 bringing the number of floats managed to 12. Shortly after this, the NSG Group increased its stake in CGH to 30 per cent.
Start of commercial production in September 2006, at the new float glass plant in Changshu, being operated by a 50:50 joint venture between the NSG Group and Shanghai Yaohua Pilkington Glass (SYP).
The float glass plant in the Moscow region of Russia, which was commissioned in early 2006 is operated by BPE in a 50:50 joint venture joint venture with Mid Europa Partners (MEP).
The Pilkington Automotive plants in Guilin, Tianjin and Changchun in China are now fully integrated into the Group’s Automotive global business line. These plants supply both OE and AGR domestically and for export and are well placed to continue growing. Additional investment is planned to increase capacity and product range.

Proactive use of e-Commerce

Pilkington has been active in developing a platform to exploit e-Commerce, particularly in the business-to-business (B2B) sector. The Group has developed and introduced e-Commerce solutions that are both standardised and tailored to local languages and business methods. Most customers and suppliers in the Building Products and Automotive businesses are now able to do business with online.

Customers are already using Pilkington Automotive's e-Commerce solutions via a large number of applications;
Almost 100 per cent of global OE sales are processed online;
North America AGR operates “e-Premier.net”, offering an online accessory catalogue and inventory query facility along with electronic ordering, invoicing and payment. The proportion of customers ordering online is around 67 per cent.
Progress has been made in Europe and in South America, where e-Commerce applications are being developed to improve service to customers and reduce transactional costs.