Align Technology (Nasdaq:ALGN) announced that it opened its first Europe, Middle East & Africa (EMEA) manufacturing facility.
The regional facility opened in Wroclaw, Poland. It represents Align’s third regional manufacturing facility globally, joining the existing ones in Juarez, Mexico, and Ziyang, China.
Align said in a news release that the state-of-the-art facility will serve as an operations site for EMEA business. It will be part of the global manufacturing of nearly 1 million clear dental aligner parts per day. The grand opening ceremony took place yesterday, Sept. 15, 2022.
Tempe, Arizona-based Align said the facility is expected to add more than 2,500 jobs by the end of 2025. This would make it the company’s largest investment in the EMEA region to date. The building has an 80,000m2 surface and follows Align sustainability norms, including LEED and ISO14001 certificates.
It began operations in the second quarter of 2022. The facility represents part of Align’s strategy to bring operational facilities closer to customers. The company said EMEA represents more than 7 million annual orthodontic case starts.
“I’m excited to announce that our first aligner manufacturing facility in the EMEA region and the third one globally has opened in Wroclaw, Poland,” said Emory Wright, Align EVP, global operations. “This significant investment underscores our commitment to Invisalign trained doctors and their patients in the region and globally and extends our regional operations that include treatment planning facilities (TREAT) based in Poland, Germany, France, and Spain.”
Plenty of business in the region
Align said the more than 13.4 million patients treated with Invisalign clear aligners include 2.6 million in EMEA. The company plans to support EMEA case shipments by 2025. Poland, Central Eastern Europe and Spain will be the first markets serviced from Wroclaw.
“It is a proud moment to have a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility start its operations in the EMEA region,” added Markus Sebastian, EVP and managing director, EMEA. “This operational expansion allows Align to stay closer to our doctor customers, and to continue to deliver outstanding quality of service – by producing thousands of aligner parts per day and by optimizing our production and delivery times. Thanks to the ongoing effort of the whole organization, we can continue our mission to help more doctors create beautiful smiles for their Invisalign patients.”