The last week of October was marked by our information days for Semperit investors at Rico, our specialist for liquid silicone and mold production. On two days, we invited both private and institutional investors and other financial stakeholders to Thalheim near Wels. The program included presentations by the Semperit Executive Board and Rico management, as well as an extensive tour of the production facilities to show Rico’s entire value chain.
The value chain begins long before the production of silicone parts for medical technology, the sanitary or food and industrial sectors. The starting point is the customer’s requirement or idea for a specific application to find a specific product solution made of silicone – often for highly complex or safety-critical products. “We clearly stand out from the competition thanks to our technological advantage. We work with our customers to develop unique solutions, for example with regard to the combination and complexity of materials and the reduction of assembly steps,” explains Rico Managing Director Thomas Aichberger.
After the drawing board, the next step is mold production, where Rico also scores with world-leading expertise. Using a single tool, we manage to inject two different materials in a single pass, for example, first a dimensionally stable thermoplastic, and then combine this with silicone, for example for sealing purposes, in a single clamping operation. This sounds a lot easier than it is: thermoplastics are plastics that are fed into the machine in the form of granules, heated, molded and then left to cool. Liquid silicone, in contrast, has the consistency of water under pressure and must be cooled until the last moment before it is processed. It is then injected into the heated mold, where the pressure can reach up to 2,500 bars and the temperature up to 220 degrees Celsius. The high temperature causes the silicone to be cured extremely quickly, making it possible to produce very thin-walled or complex parts. All this happens within seconds in a single tool. “The advantage lies in the efficiency of mapping this process in a single production step. This is what sets us apart from other solutions,” explains Aichberger. In addition, Rico tools produce around 30% more parts in a single shot (i.e. a production process that only takes a few seconds). Considering that several million parts of certain products are produced each year, this is a major efficiency gain – for Rico and for the customer.
Accuracy in the micrometer range and high degree of automation
Furthermore, mold production requires accuracy in the micrometer range. That’s a millionth of a meter. To illustrate the tiny size of a micrometer: a human hair typically has a diameter of about 50 to 100 micrometers.
The high degree of automation – another of Rico’s USPs – also enables lights-out production. At 6 p.m., the lights are literally turned off and the last employees leave the production area, but the machines work through the night. These unmanned “ghost shifts”, which require no personnel, are not only an asset in terms of employee retention and recruitment, but have also inspired Rico apprentices to create small, colorful silicone ghosts, which are very popular with visitors to the apprentice workshop and are a sought-after souvenir.
So, where can you find Rico products? “As with the other elastomer products from Semperit, you probably come into contact with Rico several times a day without knowing it, ”Rico’s managing director Aichberger explains to the visitors. It starts with your morning shower, using a high-quality shower head with silicone nubs (advantage: lime can be easily removed), continues with your morning coffee (where Rico produces a part for piercing the coffee capsule for example), to your drive to work, where silicone parts are used hundreds of times over in cars, for example in the form of sealing elements or plug connections, and perform safety-critical tasks.
Another field of application is the food industry, including products for feeding babies, such as pacifiers or teats for baby bottles. Rico has been named Supplier of the Year for the second time by the manufacturer MAM. And the same applies here: an extremely high level of expertise is required. For example, the way a pacifier feels to a baby’s tongue plays an important role. The Rico colleagues in mold production for pacifiers determine how to achieve the right feeling here. Parts for the drinking bottle manufacturer Air-up, a customer for whom Rico supplies mouthpieces, among other things, are another area of application.
The medical technology sector is highly sensitive. Among other things, tiny sleeves are manufactured here that are used in “cataract” operations and are critical to their successful outcome. Other examples include components for insulin pumps or parts for hearing aids. The domes produced by Rico – small, soft earpieces – weigh between 0.05 and 0.21 g and are used to position the speaker in the ear.
Megatrends drive growth
“Overall, we have a diversified industry structure in both mold and other production processes, with a focus on mobility, consumer & appliances, food, healthcare, plumbing and industrial applications, and we benefit from a number of trends,” says Aichberger. In the field of mobility, for example, there is an increasing trend towards lighter materials, while electrification and sustainability also play an important role. In the healthcare sector, it is the ageing population, and, in the case of industrial applications, it is the constant improvements in health and safety, and climate change, which is increasing demand for sprinkler systems (Rico supplies sealing and water distribution elements for the global world market leaders).
The overall market for liquid silicone is expanding strongly and is forecast to grow by an average of around 7% per year over the next few years. “Our goal is to outpace market growth,” says Aichberger. Compared to 2023, Rico’s revenue should roughly double by 2030. This is also in line with Rico’s mission: “Every customer looking for an efficient LSR solution thinks of Rico first.”
In any case, the foundation for further growth has been laid: the expansion of production in Thalheim was completed last spring. In addition to another office building, this primarily involves three production halls that are now being gradually filled with machines. During the tour, investors were able to see the current state for themselves. In the USA, the production area has doubled in size, and possible expansions are currently being evaluated in Switzerland. This will create space for a significant increase in capacity of more than 100 machines at the three locations in Austria, Switzerland and the USA over the next few years.
In addition to the production area, the training workshop was another important stop on the tour: every year, around 15 apprentices are hired, thus ensuring the next generation of employees for the complicated mold production process, among other things. The apprentices have their own space, including a workshop and their own study area. They also regularly work on their own apprentice projects – from the drawing board to mold making and production. So far, they have created colorful ghosts, rubber fish for sport fishing and napkin rings made of silicone. “One of the reasons why I love being here is because every visitor to our training workshop can feel the energy, drive and innovative strength of our future skilled workers,” says Aichberger.
It is not just the apprentice workshop where visitors can feel how much people enjoy working here– this joy permeates the entire company. The final stop on our investor tour was the company restaurant at Rico, where chef Rudi and his team took care of our physical well-being.
The presentations from our information day can be downloaded here:
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