Fulltech to delay expansion of fiber-glass yarn

Fulltech Fiber Glass originally planned to complete expansion of annual production capacity of fiber-glass yarn from 72,000 tons to 81,000 tons by the end of 2011, but has decided to delay completion until the first quarter of 2012 due to weak demand, according to the company.

In view of a general slowdown in the market for commodity PCBs, Fulltech said its new capacity will be mainly focused on production for industrial-grade glass yarn. Proportion of the segment in the company's overall yarn shipments will reach 60-65%, Fulltech indicated.

Fiber-glass yarn is one of the chief materials for making copper clad laminates (CCL), an upstream component of PCBs. Demand for CCL has slowed down due to worsening conditions in end markets.

Rumors have circulated that a major PCB maker has shut down one of its CCL factories in central Taiwan, and utilization rates at its plant in Kunshan, China have slid to 50% from 70% previously. Meanwhile, a number of fiber glass fabric makers reportedly have to scale down their production to respond to slowing demand.

Glotech Industrial, a producer of glass fiber fabric, has indicated that orders received in September and October turned out weaker than expected. The company has turned cautious about capacity expansion, it said.

Glotech revealed that a new factory located in Huizhou, southern China is scheduled to go online in 2013. The company plans to initially install just 200 weaving machines at the new facility.