| C O N T A C T | I M P R I N T | L E G A L P A G E | T E R M S / C O N D I T I O N S | |
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| WHO WE ARE | ||
| OUR MISSION | ||
| RELIABILITY | ||
| PERFORMANCE | ||
| INNOVATION | ||
| IN THE FUTURE | ||
| HISTORY | ||
| QUALITY MANAGEMENT | ||
| PRESS ROOM | ||
FOR PRINT VERSION  |
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| T I M E L I N E : | ||
| 1792 - 1899 | ||
| 1900 - 1945 | ||
| 1947 - 1990 | ||
| 1990 - today | ||
 Record about the registration of the trademark CUPROPHAN®. |
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 1947 - 1990 The reformed J. P. Bemberg AG resumed production in 1947. Because of the increased importance of fully synthetic chemically-produced fibres such as nylon and Perlon - another polyamide-based synthetic fibre widely used in clothing manufacture - the market for copper rayon for stockings completely collapsed. However there was further development of the continuous Dureta spinning process, in which the rayon is spun, washed, prepared and dried in one operation. There were also new marketing successes - for example the first washable artificial silk - "Bemberg-Lavabel", made of cuprammonium rayon - and many other specialised products. At the same time the production of cellulose sheeting, which was given the name Cuprophan®, was greatly expanded. In 1955 the company entered into a contract with Algemene Kunstzijde Unie NV Arnheim ("General Artificial Silk Union of Arnheim") a Dutch company which became a joint shareholder. The company began production of flat membranes for dialysis in 1965: the construction of the first "kidney tube machine" occurred a year later. In 1968, the annual turnover in flat membranes amounted to around 1 million DM, and hollow fibre (capillary) membranes for dialysis were first produced in 1969. By now the company's workforce had climbed once again, to around 3,800, and a quality management system was established to safeguard every aspect of the production process and the quality of dialysis membranes for medical use. In 1971 J. P. Bemberg AG merged with Glanzstoff AG and the company was renamed Enka Glanzstoff AG. Although the production of cuprammonium rayon for textile use ceased in 1972, dialysis membrane and Perlon production continued in the Wuppertal works. Customers' positive reaction to the manufacture of hollow fibres led to the start of the production of capillary membranes for dialysis in 1974. This year also marked the peak of Perlon production, which then began to decline as market forces changed. By 1976 the turnover from membranes was around 50 million DM and Perlon production had been reduced by 50%. The highest growth rate in the dialysis membrane sector occurred in 1977, when the company was also engaged in many development projects - including the first research into membranes produced from synthetic polymers. In August 1977 the company name was changed from Enka Glanzstoff AG to Enka AG - a name which was to become very familiar to doctors all over the world. The gradual winding-up of Perlon production released staff to extend dialysis membrane production - especially capillary membranes. In 1981, the use of membranes for technical applications began, together with the production of fully-synthetic polyamide flat membranes. Hemophan® (a dialysis membrane with increased haemocompatibility and phosphate clearance) - and Oxyphan® (a membrane for use in artificial lungs) were introduced in 1987. At the same time production of Accurel® flat membranes was taken over from the former American Enka. |
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| PORTAL | HOME |  |
ABOUT MEMBRANA | ||
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MEMBRANA RESEARCH | ||||
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MEMBRANES FOR HAEMODIALYSIS | ||||
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MEMBRANES FOR OXYGENATION, APHERESIS AND I.V. FILTRATION | ||||
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INDUSTRIAL MEMBRANE SPECIALITIES | ||||
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ACCUREL SYSTEMS | ||||