AkzoNobel's Plant Closures & Expansion Moves
On May 22, AkzoNobel, an international coatings giant, announced that it would close its production sites in Wapenveld, the Netherlands, and Machelen, Belgium, and consolidate production at other locations in the region.
All relevant parties have been informed of the planned closure of Wapenvelope and Machelen, as well as the next steps, which require consultation with local employee representatives.
The planned closure of the plants is part of the company's multi-year industrial transformation plan. On May 23 last year, the company had announced its intention to close its production sites in Grote-Amers, the Netherlands, Cork, Ireland, and Lusaka, Zambia, and transfer production to other locations in the region, which is scheduled to be fully completed by the end of 2026. Recently, AkzoNobel also plans to streamline its plant in Montaaire, France.
On January 10 this year, AkzoNobel presented a plan to employee representatives and French employees, which included an investment of 22 million euros to make the Montaaire production site in France a flagship base for decorative paint production.
The company also plans to reorganize its commercial and support functions and distribution network, including transferring some sales points to independent partners and closing some sales points. As a result of these business reforms, it is expected that up to 211 positions will be reduced in France and 29 jobs will be created.
Akzo Nobel said that industrial transformation is a strategic priority to improve operations and reduce complexity. By focusing on larger and more efficient anchors, the company aims to reduce operating costs and optimize its industrial network to enhance competitiveness and drive sustainable growth.
The company also said that capital allocation will be increasingly concentrated on anchor sites, which will also enable future innovation. Recent examples include equipment and process upgrades at the company's aviation coatings base in Pamila, France, and a new research laboratory in Sassenheim, the Netherlands.
Akzo Nobel was first established in 1792 and is a leader in the global decorative coatings industry and the world's largest functional coatings manufacturer. Its business covers architectural coatings, automotive coatings, wood coatings, marine coatings, 3C coatings, wind power coatings, aviation coatings, packaging coatings, etc., with operations in more than 100 countries and regions around the world.
According to the authoritative list released by "Coating Industry", Akzo Nobel ranked third in the 2025 global top ten coatings manufacturers with sales revenue of US$11.234 billion.
While closing factories in many parts of the world, Akzo Nobel continued to invest in other parts of the world. For example, last year it planned to invest more than US$30 million to expand the production capacity of four powder coatings bases in North America, invest in expanding the production capacity of coatings production bases in Hanoi, Vietnam and Como, Italy, and invest in the construction of coatings production bases in Pakistan.
Especially in China, Akzo Nobel has invested intensively in recent years to expand the production capacity of multiple production bases, demonstrating its confidence in the development prospects of the Chinese economy and coatings market.
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