More than 120 participants from local government, Sanner management, shareholders, the construction contractors, as well as the Sanner project team and workforce attended the groundbreaking ceremony and festivities at the new location in the industrial estate “Stubenwald” in Bensheim, Germany, on January 21. With construction now underway, the business is due to transition all production to the new, state-of-the-art facility in September 2024. The building is centrally positioned to access key logistics routes. “The new site will be a great place to work with ample further capacity to address all of our current and future customers’ needs” says Dr. Johannis Willem van Vliet, CEO of the Sanner Group.
More than double the existing production capacity
The new site will have 30,000 square meters of production floor, doubling Sanner’s existing German capacity. New state-of-the-art, highly automated equipment will further increase production capacity by even more than 100 percent. The new facility will have the following capabilities:
- 300 square meters for a new technology and innovation center (“Sanner Technikum”), where customer-specific solutions and prototypes will be developed,
- separate desiccant and injection molding areas,
- a flexible molding and assembly production floor to adapt to customer needs in both the packaging and device CDMO areas,
- an automated central material supply to feed all machines,
- class 7 and 8 clean room capacity,
- ESD floors for electronic medical device components,
- double the current warehouse capacity with a fully automated stock management system.
“We want to offer our customers the highest possible flexibility and automation,” says van Vliet. “With the new production facilities, we have the space to cater to all needs – from desiccant or effervescent packaging to medical technology, diagnostics, mechatronic pharma drug delivery solutions and drug handling.”
Focus on sustainability
The new site will reduce energy consumption by 20-30 percent. By reducing natural gas use, installing state-of-the-art heat pumps and an automated heat exchange system, Sanner will further improve its ecological footprint. A photovoltaic system will also be installed. It will cover the entire roof of the factory, generating enough energy to power over 300 single-family households. Additionally, wind turbines will supply the energy needed for exterior lighting and electric chargers for electrical bicycles and cars. These measures, along with substantial vegetation and roof greening, make the new site a flagship for sustainable production in the region.
80 percent more capacity in Kunshan
In China, Sanner will start production in a new facility in summer 2023. The existing factory in Kunshan will continue to operate in parallel, whilst delivering the exemplary quality standards to which Sanners customers have become accustomed. The two sites are in close proximity and will give new and existing customers additional flexibility and increased supply security. The new site will have the following capabilities:
- 4,000 additional square meters of production space,
- class D clean rooms for GMP-compliant production of pharmaceutical and medical packaging solutions,
- warehouse, workshop, and office areas,
- a high degree of automation and energy-saving systems for highly efficient production processes.
“Altogether, Sanner will be able to increase production capacities in China by around 80 percent. This will enable us to grow the existing portfolio, while offering significantly more space to execute on our strategic focus as a device CDMO in China,” says Ralf Tiemann, CEO Asia-Pacific.
Further expansions planned
Following the expansions in Europe and Asia, Sanner intends to expand its business in North America. “In line with our market growth plans and the demands of our customers, we are looking to acquire a facility for development and production in the States to supply our U.S. customers with high-quality Sanner products and CDMO services even more efficiently,” says van Vliet.
About Sanner
Sanner GmbH was founded in 1894. Headquartered in Germany and leveraging its best-in-class manufacturing facilities across Germany, France, Hungary, and China. Sanner has successively developed from a global market leader for desiccant closures and effervescent tablet packaging into a sought-after provider of customized solutions in the areas of medical devices and diagnostics, pharmaceuticals, and consumer healthcare. Today, Sanner supplies its products to more than 150 countries globally and has over 600 employees. Since November 2021, GHO Capital, a leading specialist healthcare investment advisor, holds the majority shares of Sanner. Together, GHO and the fourth generation of the Sanner family will continue the successful growth and create intelligent healthcare solutions for a better quality of life.
Media contact
Commha Consulting GmbH & Co. KG
Annette Crowther
Poststraße 48
69115 Heidelberg
Germany
Tel. +49 (0)6221 18779-27
sanner@commhaconsulting.com
