Update: POLIFILM PROTECTION 15 months after the fire
Achieved milestones and clear roadmap for the future
Around 15 months have passed since the fire broke out at the POLIFILM plant in Wipperfuerth. A lot has happened since then, and the POLIFILM PROTECTION team have even more plans for the future.
Whilst the coordinated and dedicated efforts of the staff on site meant that goods could be dispatched from the warehouse after just two days, the remediation work on the hall caused by the fire has taken longer but is now also largely complete. The final major step – the completion of the hall floor, which will enable the affected section to be operational again – is scheduled for Q3 2026. From early 2027, it will be time to make a fresh start. In addition to the undamaged production line, which was back in operation after just two weeks, new, modern and high-performance machinery is waiting to be installed and commissioned.
The management team at POLIFILM PROTECTION are once again demonstrating their guiding principle: crises provide opportunities to overcome and emerge stronger. Consequently, the strategic focus is not simply on rebuilding, but on using this event as an opportunity to further develop the Wipperfuerth site, both in terms of technology and organization in order to increase its long term efficiency and competitiveness. This philosophy is also emphasised by Isa Onur Sahbaz, General Manager of the production company in Wipperfuerth: ´Our aim, following the challenging months we have just been through, is to be able to look ahead with optimism: with a sustainable, future-proof site in Wipperfuerth.´
Our aim, following the challenging months we have just been through, is to be able to look ahead with optimism: with a sustainable, future-proof site in Wipperfuerth.
Isa Onur Sahbaz General Manager of the production company in Wipperfuerth
Original post from 27th of May 2025
Fire in the production hall of POLIFILM PROTECTION in Wipperfuerth
In the late evening of 26.05.2025, there was a fire at the POLIFILM PROTECTION plant in Wipperfuerth, which was only fully extinguished in the early hours of the next morning.
The cause of the fire is currently under investigation. As the investigations have not yet been fully completed and to avoid hindering these investigations, POLFILM PROTECTION is unable to make any further statements for the time being.
POLIFILM is grateful to all the emergency services on site and those present in production for their calm and measured reactions. The level-headed behaviour of the trained staff played a key role in ensuring that the response chain both internally and externally to the local emergency services was immediately triggered and that everyone involved remained unharmed.
It is unclear exactly what impact the fire will have on the timing of the resumption of production operations.
