Dürr has signed a framework agreement with aircraft manufacturer EADS/Airbus for the supply of a total of 57 painting booths. This order is due to be executed in two phases and completed by the end of 2013; over half of the project will be executed in 2009 and 2010. Initially, a total of seven Airbus plants in Germany, France and Spain will be supplied; other locations might follow.

“The order is another milestone in the strategic expansion of our business with the aircraft industry, after we recently realized a complete assembly line for Airbus in China,” said Ralf Dieter, Dürr AG’s CEO. “It underscores our competence in executing large international projects. Moreover, the long term of the contract will assure a good basic level of capacity utilization in our aircraft activities.”

The core product for the Airbus order is a modular standard painting booth to be used primarily for coating carbon fiber fuselage sections for the A350 wide-body aircraft. The booths will be delivered successively to all seven Airbus plants covered by the framework agreement. Dürr is currently engaged in concrete negotiations on other projects for the aircraft industry. The expansion of the aircraft activities is part of its “Dürr 2010” strategy. Here, Dürr is leveraging its existing technologies and core competences to strengthen fast-growing areas of activity and to penetrate new industries. As a supplier of plant and equipment for the aircraft industry, Dürr is expanding its business not only in painting technology but also in assembly systems.