New investment at thyssenkrupp in Homburg

• New high-performance crankshaft forging line raises productivity by 10 percent
• Investment of roughly 30 million euros
• 46 new jobs created

thyssenkrupp has installed a new high-performance forging line at its Homburg site in the German state of Saarland. The line with its fully automated main press was built in a 5,000 square meter shop situated on the grounds of the existing production site and started serial operation at the beginning of the year. The roughly 30 million euro investment was made to meet new orders from customers in the automotive industry. It sends out a clear signal for the future of the site and creates 46 new jobs. The plant produces over six million forged crankshafts each year.

“We started investing in the expansion of our Homburg facility last year to be able to handle new orders from automotive customers. Central to this is the new high-performance forging line which will enable us to increase our crankshaft production. This will strengthen the Homburg site and create new jobs,” says Franz Eckl, managing director of the thyssenkrupp facility in Homburg. The main press of the new forging line, which will raise productivity by 10 percent, has a capacity of 6,500 metric tons, the equivalent of twelve fully laden passenger aircraft.

In recent years the company furthermore has extensively modernized the site, including new and improved infrastructure (e.g. office and social facilities, heat insulation/recovery, and energy supply). These measures have achieved a roughly 30 percent reduction in specific energy consumption in recent years. An energy-efficient and employee-friendly environment has been created for the new press line. There have also been improvements to the existing forging lines, where automation and digitization have completely transformed the image of the “classic forge”.

thyssenkrupp does not just invest in upgrading its machinery and equipment; the company also attaches great importance to continuously developing its workforce and improving health and safety. As one of the biggest employers in the region, thyssenkrupp in Homburg focuses particularly on providing training to young people. The company currently has around 40 apprentices, five of them surplus trainees. Health and safety standards at the plant are also very high; in a recent initiative to improve health and safety throughout the thyssenkrupp organization, the Homburg site was singled out as one of the best companies.

thyssenkrupp is one of the world’s leading drop forging operations and market leader for forged crankshafts. Located in Homburg since 1947, the company employs some 750 people developing and producing crankshafts for the international automotive industry on six forging lines. The business unit produces a broad range of engine, gear and chassis components at sites in Europe, North, Central and South America and Asia.

thyssenkrupp in the automotive industry

thyssenkrupp is one of the world’s leading suppliers of materials and components to the auto industry. Nine out of ten premium class cars are fitted with components made by the company. One in three trucks feature drive components from thyssenkrupp. In the 2015/2016 fiscal year thyssenkrupp’s sales in the automotive sector came to around 9.8 billion euros. Customers include practically all the big auto manufacturers.