In 2007, Lenzing already granted smartfiber a license for the pilot production of new types of lyocell specialty fibers. Moreover, smartfiber and Lenzing have been cooperating for several years to develop fabrics and on various research projects.

For reasons of profitability, the pilot plant of smartfiber is being relocated from Rudolstadt to Lenzing in order to be able to rapidly move ahead with the commercial exploitation of smartcel and SeaCell fibers in spite of rising energy and raw material prices. The integration of the facility in Lenzing, the world’s largest cellulose fiber production site, will enable a significantly better cost structure. Moreover, the smartfiber pilot plant had recently reached its capacity limits due to the continually increasing order volume, which no longer made it possible to optimally coordinate incoming orders and accept large orders.