LEXINGTON, N.C. — Wood-based materials manufacturer Egger Wood Products has started production on a third lamination line at its Lexington, N.C. facility. The $21 million investment will expand the company’s thermally fused laminate (TFL) production capacity by 50%, increasing production to more than 155 million sq. ft. per year, and alleviate supply chain and logistical challenges for customers.

The state-of-the-art particleboard manufacturing plant, with TFL lamination capacity, started production in September 2020. The total investment of the project, once completed, will be more than $700 million and will create an estimated 770 direct jobs. 

Egger’s Eurodekor TFL boards are produced on lamination lines by fusing resin-impregnated decorative paper directly onto both sides of the company’s Eurospan Particleboard substrate, which is also produced at the Lexington, N.C. plant. TFL is easy to process as a pre-fabricated, finished panel that requires only cutting and edge banding. It is also durable, scratch- and fade-resistant and hygienic, thanks to its nonporous surface. 

Egger has also announced an additional $22 million investment to install a decorative paper impregnation line. This new line will supply locally-produced, resin-infused decorative papers to the lamination lines, allowing the company to have greater production flexibility to better meet the needs of its customers. Construction is expected to be completed this summer.

“Currently, we import impregnated papers from our manufacturing facility in St. Johann in Tyrol, Austria,” said Markus Frevert, plant manager for production at Egger. “Ideally, the impregnated papers should be laminated within six months for optimal quality. Local impregnation will eliminate up to three months of shipping time, resulting in a longer lifespan for the papers, which will significantly reduce waste and costs, improve our service for special orders and shorten lead times.”                                

The new lamination and impregnation lines, representing a more than $42 million investment and 40 new jobs, will work in tandem to increase TFL production capacity while allowing Egger to better serve the needs of its customers in North America. 

Egger was founded in 1961 in St. Johann in Tyrol, Austria, and the Egger Group is a more than a $4.3 billion privately-held, family-owned company that employs more than 11,100 associates. Egger is a global leader in the manufacturing of wood-based materials for the furniture and interior design, flooring and building products industries. The company’s extensive, value-added product range includes thermally fused laminate (TFL), laminates, edge banding, raw particleboard, medium density fiberboard (MDF) and MDF Mouldings. Egger operates 21 plants globally, including Egger Wood Products LLC in Lexington, N.C., the company's first production facility in North America.