3M builds LCD facility in Poland

Europe currently represents the largest market for liquid crystal display televisions, according to DisplaySearch, and is expected to remain the fastest- growing market through 2009. 3M plans to purchase a piece of land in Wroclaw near its existing manufacturing operation, which is about 340 kilometers from 3M's offices in Warsaw. "We are building the plant in Wroclaw to be near our customers, such as L.G. Philips LCD, to better serve them and to better serve the largest LCD-TV market in the world," said Andy Wong, division vice president, 3M Optical Systems Division. "This investment is part of our ongoing commitment to meet the needs of the industry and our customers as we expand existing facilities and build new ones." Over the last few years, 3M has invested to support customer growth in the LCD industry by expanding its facilities in Menomonie, Wis., and Decatur, Ala. in the United States; and by building new facilities in Kansai, Japan; Suzhou, China; Tainan, Taiwan; and Hwaseong and Naju, Korea. 3M's Vikuiti brand optical films are used to make LCD TVs significantly brighter than TVs without enhancement films, more energy efficient and more vibrant in real-life lighting conditions by optimizing and recycling light. By enabling vivid, lifelike pictures in environments ranging from natural daylight to a darkened room, Vikuiti technology offers consumers more flexibility to place a TV in a variety of locations in their homes without sacrificing picture quality.