Enka GmbH & Co. KG

Enka GmbH & Co. KG is a German producer of viscose filament yarns, marketed under the ENKA® Viscose brand. The company traces its roots to the Vereinigte Glanzstoff-Fabriken AG founded in 1899, and the Enka name itself was reintroduced in 1969 by the Dutch chemical group AKU. Today Enka is owned by the International Chemical Investors Group (ICIG), which acquired it in 2005. Its administration is based in Wuppertal, while production takes place at the Industrie Center Obernburg in Germany — described as Western Europe's largest chemical fibre site — and at a plant in Gorzów Wielkopolski, Poland. The company employs around 570 people across three locations in Germany and Poland and has a technical capacity of approximately 8,000 annual tonnes of viscose filament yarn. Enka's core product, ENKA® Viscose, is a natural polymer made from pure cellulose derived from wood. It is used in a wide range of textile applications, from apparel to technical and medical textiles. The company emphasises sustainability: the yarn is made from certified renewable raw materials and is 100% biodegradable. Enka positions itself as a reliable partner for sustainable solutions in the textile value chain, with high standards for raw materials, product quality and safety, environmental protection, occupational safety and employee health. The company's history is closely tied to the development of the European man-made fibre industry. It emerged from the Vereinigte Glanzstoff-Fabriken AG, which acquired the viscose patent in 1911 and began practising the viscose process in Obernburg in 1924. After various mergers and restructurings — including integration into AkzoNobel and later Acordis — Enka became part of ICIG in 2005. In recent years, Enka has faced competitive pressure from Indian and Chinese producers. In early 2025 the company briefly announced the closure of its Obernburg site by the end of September 2025, affecting 237 jobs, but reversed the decision in late February 2025 after securing a major order from a single customer that ensures high capacity utilisation until 2027.

Enka's history begins with the Vereinigte Glanzstoff-Fabriken AG, founded in 1899. Its founders, Fremery and Urban, recognised the potential of artificial silk, acquired the viscose patent in 1911 and brought it to production maturity at the Oberbruch plant. From 1924, the viscose process was practised in Obernburg. In 1929, the Vereinigte Glanzstoff-Fabriken AG merged with the Nederlandse Kunstzijdefabriek (NK, pronounced 'Enka'), founded in Arnhem in 1913, to form Algemeene Kunstzijde Unie N.V. (AKU), which also managed the American plants in Elizabethton until their sale in 1948. After the Second World War, the Heinsberg-Oberbruch plant developed into a leading production site for chemical fibres. This increased demands on spinnerets, leading to the creation of a dedicated department from the spinneret workshop. In 1978, the spinning centre and physics laboratory were merged into the Enka Tecnica department, which sold its products through the sales channels of Barmag AG. In 1998, Enka Tecnica GmbH was formed, and since 2015 it has belonged to the Reifenhäuser Group. In 1969, after several further mergers, AKU reintroduced the name Enka, creating Enka GmbH. The new company incorporated the plants and buildings of Glanzstoff, including the main plant in Oberbruch, the plants in Niedermorschweiler, Obernburg, Kassel-Bettenhausen (Spinnfaser AG, 1935–1984) and Kelsterbach, as well as the Glanzstoff high-rise in Wuppertal-Elberfeld. In the 1970s, Enka AG was integrated as a subsidiary into the Dutch chemical company Akzo, later AkzoNobel, for the production of cellulosic continuous filament yarn. In 1983, Enka AG entered a licensing agreement with the Japanese company Toho Rayon for the production of carbon fibres, with Oberbruch as the production site from 1986. This gave rise to Teijin Carbon Europe GmbH, which still produces in Oberbruch and has its administration in the Glanzstoff high-rise in Wuppertal. In 1990, Enka bought the plant of the VEB 'Clara Zetkin' Elsterberg in the former East Germany, dismissed most employees and modernised it with subsidies. In 1999, the plant in Gorzów Wielkopolski, Poland, was added, while the Kelsterbach plant was closed in 2000. In 1998, AkzoNobel took over the British fibre, paint and coatings manufacturer Courtaulds Ltd., merged Courtaulds' fibre activities with its own and sold them in 1999 as a new company named Acordis. For Acordis, 19,000 employees at 25 locations in eight countries produced chemical fibres and specialty products for technical, textile, medical and hygiene applications. Enka remained an independent part of the Acordis Group with its four production sites in Obernburg, Oberbruch, Elsterberg and Gorzów. In 2005, the International Chemical Investors Group took over Enka GmbH & Co. KG, including its plants in Obernburg, Oberbruch, Elsterberg, Gorzów and the administration in Wuppertal, along with more than 1,000 employees. In 2007, Enka closed the Oberbruch plant with 150 employees. In 2009, the Elsterberg plant with 350 employees followed, in favour of the Obernburg site. In January and February 2025, the company briefly announced that production at the Obernburg site would be discontinued by the end of September 2025. The reasons cited were primarily competitive disadvantages compared to rivals from India and China. The closure would have affected 237 jobs. At the end of February 2025, the decision was reversed. A major order from a single customer was said to secure 'high basic utilisation of production capacity' until 2027. In 2025, Enka has a production capacity of around 8,000 annual tonnes of viscose filament yarn.

• 2025

  Closure of Obernburg announced then reversed after major order.

• 2009

  Elsterberg plant closed (350 employees).

• 2007

  Obernburg plant closed (150 employees).

• 2005

  International Chemical Investors Group acquires Enka GmbH & Co. KG.

• 2000

  Kelsterbach plant closed.

• 1999

  Gorzów Wielkopolski plant added.

• 1998

  AkzoNobel merges Courtaulds' fibre activities; Acordis formed.

• 1990

  Acquisition of VEB 'Clara Zetkin' Elsterberg plant.

• 1983

  Licensing agreement with Toho Rayon for carbon fibre production.

• 1970

  Enka AG becomes a subsidiary of Akzo (later AkzoNobel).

• 1969

  AKU reintroduces the name Enka; Enka GmbH is created.

• 1929

  Merger with Nederlandse Kunstzijdefabriek (NK) to form AKU.

• 1924

  Viscose process begins in Obernburg.

• 1911

  Viscose patent acquired and brought to production maturity at Oberbruch.

• 1899

  Vereinigte Glanzstoff-Fabriken AG founded, predecessor of Enka.

Sustainable, high-quality viscose filament yarns made from certified renewable raw materials, 100% biodegradable, for textile, technical and medical applications.

• ENKA® Viscose

  Viscose filament yarns made from pure cellulose, 100% biodegradable, for apparel, technical and medical textiles.

1. 1ENKA | The Art of Viscoseenka.de
2. 2Enka GmbH & Co. KG - Wikidatawikidata.org
3. 3Enka (Unternehmen) - Wikipediade.wikipedia.org