AGC celebrates 10 years in Brazil with a trajectory of exponential growth and consolidation in the market
The month of April marks the 10th anniversary of the Japanese multinational’s presence on Brazilian soil
Guaratinguetá, April 2021 – In April 2011, the history of the first subsidiary of the AGC Group in South America began with the formal announcement of its investments in Brazil. Soon after, the first employees were hired, AGC professionals from around the world arrived in the country to develop the project in the glass market, and there were many expectations for the arrival of a leading global company and for the construction of a new oven Float.
Today, after 10 years, with several business expansion initiatives carried out and more than 1.8 billion reais invested in the country, the company has consolidated itself in the Brazilian market as the second largest manufacturer of flat glass in the country, serving the Civil Construction and Industry, as well as the Automotive sector, and has been strengthening the commercial operations of its Chemicals division.
The place chosen for the beginning of this trajectory was Guaratinguetá, a city in the interior of the State of São Paulo, in the region of Vale do Paraíba. Installed on a land of more than 700,000 m², on the banks of the Presidente Dutra highway, the factory was inaugurated in 2013, with a Float oven in operation and a production capacity of 600 tons of flat glass per day, an automotive glass plant with capacity production to serve more than 500 thousand vehicles/year and a mirroring line.
But this number was soon increased with the expansion project and construction of the second kiln, started in 2016 and completed in 2019, which allowed a 140% increase in the company’s production capacity, as well as the expansion of the production of automotive glass and the addition of a line of special glasses.
Currently, the factory complex produces 1,450 tons of flat glass per day, manufactured in two Float furnaces, has production lines for mirror/painted glass and coater (reflective glass), in addition to an extensive and modern automotive glass plant. The company also has two subsidiaries in other cities, being automotive glass value-adding units, in Betim-MG and Piracicaba-SP.
AGC Vidros do Brasil is one of the largest employers in Vale do Paraíba, with around 1,000 direct employees and more than twice as many indirect employees in its chain. “We are proud of the history we are building. From the beginning, our objective was to grow with Brazil and with Brazilians. Even in challenging times, such as the one we are living in, AGC reinforces its commitment to the country, seeking to contribute to the local and national economy, keeping its facilities safe and supporting social and health initiatives to fight the Covid-19 pandemic in the surrounding cities”, emphasizes the President and General Director of Finance and Business Support for South America, Fábio Oliveira.
Business
In the Glass for Civil Construction and Industry segment, residential and commercial glass is offered, as well as glass for decoration, furniture and white goods (stoves, refrigerators and ovens). “Over these years, we have built a solid customer base. There are more than 300 partners across the country and South America, who have built a relationship of trust with us, as a result of our constant search for operational and service excellence”, comments the General Director of the Glass Division for Civil Construction and Industry for South America, Isidoro Lopes.
AGC has a broad portfolio, which includes from varied Float options (base glass), with different colors and thicknesses, to the most complete line of special glasses, for interior design projects, architecture, facades and industrial applications. “Brazil has great potential to increase the consumption of glass and the possibilities for applying this material. Working for the growth of the national market, especially with regard to the use of value-added glass, is a way of contributing to the strengthening of the entire glass chain, and this is exactly what AGC Brasil has been aiming for in the last decade”, adds Director Isidoro Lopes.
AGC Brazil’s Automotive Division serves the main automakers in the country, supplying side windows, windshields and rear windows. The company also offers parts for the automotive glass aftermarket. According to the General Director of the Automotive Glass Division for South America, João Siqueira, the division has been getting stronger over the years, despite the instability of the automotive market: “We expanded our production capacity, inaugurated two aggregation units value in other cities, we have developed important national projects with exclusive AGC technology and we have increasingly achieved exceptional levels of service and product quality. A hard work by a dedicated team, which enabled several recognitions and awards from our customers”.
The Chemical Division, on the other hand, has commercial operations in Brazil since 2015 and has been growing intensely in recent years, providing the South American market with chemical products imported from AGC Chemicals from other countries. Offers a wide range of high-performance fluoropolymers, including fluoroelastomers, PTFE, PFA and ETFE resins, and fluoropolymer compounds. It also produces materials that meet the unique requirements of specific applications such as paints, fabrics, facades and cosmetics.
Social and Environmental Commitment
The most sustainable flat glass plant in Latin America has as one of its priorities the care for the environment and people. AGC Brasil has state-of-the-art technologies and has ISO 9001 (Quality Management System), ISO 14001 (Environmental Management System), OHSAS 18001 (Occupational Health and Safety Management System) and IATF 16949 (Management System) certifications of Automotive Quality).
“Our social role is to promote a positive impact on society. For this reason, we seek to cultivate a corporate culture that values well-being, encouraging diversity, respect for the environment and for people”, emphasizes the CEO, Fábio Oliveira.
As for environmental care, the company has a technology for treating atmospheric emissions that is unprecedented in the glass sector in the country, exceeding CETESB standards. AGC Brasil is also highly utilized in waste management, with only 10% of its waste being disposed of in industrial landfills. In addition, it invests in an environmental recovery program promoting the planting of more than 20 thousand native trees, with the goal of planting another 13 thousand.
In the Social Responsibility area, AGC Brasil supports projects aimed at education and culture. The company has already contributed to actions by Masp, the Japanese Immigration Museum, the Mário de Andrade Library and the Lina Bo Bardi Institute. In addition, it invests in regional actions, such as the Corporate Volunteer Program, in which it promoted the reform of the public school in Guaratinguetá and the São Francisco de Assis Home for the Elderly. In the last year, the company also supported several social and health initiatives in the surrounding cities to prevent and combat the Covid-19 Pandemic.
Future
Commitment to Brazil, Optimism for the Future is the message that AGC has adopted in Brazil and represents the company’s efforts to continue cooperating with the development of the segments in which it operates and the communities where it is established.
According to the directors, the company will expand investments in technology and sustainability, keeping itself more and more in line with Industry 4.0 and with digital transformation initiatives: “Following our vision of Look Beyond, our purpose is to anticipate the needs of society and market trends”.
In closing, the Board of AGC Brasil reinforces the company’s potential for innovation and its commitment to the development of solutions that contribute to people’s daily lives and actions that enable the construction of a better future for new generations: “AGC is a global reference in innovation, we are the glass manufacturer with the highest number of patents in the world and we have been continuously working on surprising and sustainable solutions, very much in line with the future. As our brand signature symbolizes, people can and should dream, AGC’s challenge is to make these dreams come true”.
Novelty that will make everything Blue: new solar control glass expands the shades and possibilities of our Sunlux Shadow line