AFSI to create new jobs in Most

24 Jun. 2008 | CzechInvest | A new factory in Most will produce filters for Caterpillar Inc.

The American company Advanced Filtration Systems Inc. (AFSI) is planning to create new jobs in Most. AFSI will produce filters for Caterpillar machines and engines at the Joseph Industrial Zone. Construction of a new factory started at the beginning of June and a groundbreaking ceremony took place there today.

“Thanks to AFSI’s investment, one of the last prepared spaces in the Joseph Industrial Zone is being occupied, making Joseph one of the most successful industrial parks in the Czech Republic,” says Alexandra Rudyšarová, acting CEO of CzechInvest. “With 12.5 percent of its people out of work, the Most region has the highest unemployment rate in the Czech Republic. AFSI’s investment is thus of significant benefit to the area.”

“AFSI was established more than twenty years ago and since then we have relied on our factory in the United States for production of filters for Caterpillar, whose rapid growth led us to construct another facility,” explains Jeff Stierman, general director of AFSI. “We decided for the Czech Republic due to a number of reasons, including the country’s favourable location in Central Europe, availability of suitable land and available workers. Another important factor that influenced our decision was a good reference from out partner, Donaldson Company, which for nearly ten years has had operations nearby, in Klášterec a Kadaň.”

Commencement of trial operation at AFSI’s Most plant is expected at the beginning of next year. From 2009 the North Bohemian plant will supply Caterpillar’s distribution networks in Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia. The plant should reach full production capacity by 2011, at which time it will employ up to 200 people.

“Unlike other original equipment manufacturers that depend on a third party for development and production of filters, we use this cooperating enterprise for design, development and production of filters which are made specifically to ensure the performance of Caterpillar machines and engines and the longevity of their components,” says Chris Chadwick, maintenance product and services manager at Caterpillar.

AFSI is planning to use Czech companies for deliveries of raw materials and services. The company does not use any metal parts in the internal components of filters. Thanks to this, no particles are released that could damage the engine or other machine parts that the filter is intended to protect. As Jeff Stierman, president and general manager of Advanced Filtration Systems Inc., pointed out, AFSI is the only producer in this area that uses this technology in its whole range of filters.

In the first step of filter production, a special machine forms the filtration material into the required shape. The filter is then hardened in an oven and wrapped in fibreglass. Finally, the space between individual segments is set and a complete filtration insert is thus created. Inserts are either sold separately or are sealed inside metal housings to form complete filters which are delivered to customers around the world.