Vreden – Matthews International Corporation (“Matthews” or the “Company”) today announced the official opening of its new Development Center in Vreden, Germany. Spanning over 1,000 square meters of usable space, the cutting-edge facility is dedicated to industrial process optimization, technological innovation, and the development of sustainable solutions for the future.

With this new Center, Matthews Engineering—a business within the Matthews Industrial Technologies segment—further strengthens its position as one of the global leaders and system architects of technologically advanced production systems. The group specializes in rotary manufacturing processes and tooling solutions for a wide range of web-shaped materials. These activities are consolidated under the Matthews Engineering brand, known for high-precision, intelligent engineering solutions – especially in the coating and converting industry and in new energy technologies.

The facility significantly expands the company’s development and testing capabilities. It combines state-of-the-art laboratory and simulation environments with highly adaptable testing areas, creating ideal conditions for optimizing existing processes and developing next-generation technologies.

Technology Meets Application: Simulation Center for Industrial Processes

At the heart of the new Development Center is a laboratory and process simulation hub where innovative production methods are developed, digitally simulated, and tested under real-world conditions for feasibility, scalability, and efficiency – ensuring rapid transfer to industrial application. The focus is on rotary processes and web materials used in the production of technical membranes, films, battery electrodes, and components for hydrogen fuel cells.

The lab areas are flexibly designed to meet a wide range of research needs. Modular testing spaces on the first floor allow for diverse pilot setups at near-industrial scale. The application-oriented hall on the ground floor will house Matthews Engineering’s latest generation, mass production scale rotary processing and calendaring equipment for energy storage—setting a new industry standard for R&D and industrial-scale innovation.

The facility also features advanced, configurable lab equipment — including the GK300L, Matthews Engineering’s versatile laboratory calender. With capabilities such as compressing, embossing, laminating, and coating, the GK300L offers a wide variety of testing options and enables the mapping of relevant scalable laboratory processes in the battery sector.

Modern engineering offices and an integrated maker workshop—equipped with the latest 3D printing and prototyping technologies—further complement the development environment. These tools offer valuable acceleration in the rapid implementation of industrial applications.

Cross-Site Collaboration Fuels an Innovation Ecosystem

The new Development Center is seamlessly integrated into Matthews’ broader innovation network. Together with development and testing hubs in the region, including in Bocholt —featuring specialized dry rooms and advanced coating test lines—a powerful innovation ecosystem is emerging. Close collaboration with industrial partners, companies, and research institutions is a core pillar of the company’s development strategy. Matthews is also a regular participant in publicly funded, forward-looking research projects in the renewable energy sector.

“Our strength lies in seamlessly translating development into application. In Vreden, we create solutions that are not only technologically advanced but also precisely aligned with real-world requirements,” says Thomas Hackfort, Senior Vice President, Design & Development, Matthews Engineering.

Boosting Regional Impact and Global Industry Transformation

With the opening of the Vreden facility, Matthews is positioning itself as a long-term innovation leader across the world. The new Center unites theory and practice, offering an attractive environment for skilled professionals, engineers, and scientists.

“The new Development Center is a clear commitment to the future of Matthews Engineering and to our valued customers. It’s a place where ideas become market-ready innovations, and where we work alongside our partners to actively shape the transformation of industrial processes,” says Brandon Babe, President, Matthews Engineering.

This investment underscores Matthews’ ongoing commitment to technological excellence, the close integration of research and application, and its role as an innovator in industrial solutions for the energy transition and beyond.

About Matthews International

Matthews International Corporation operates through two core global businesses – Industrial Technologies and Memorialization. Both are focused on driving operational efficiency and long-term growth through continuous innovation and strategic expansion.

The Industrial Technologies segment evolved from our original marking business, which today is a leading global innovator committed to empowering visionaries to transform industries through the application of precision technologies and intelligent processes. The Memorialization segment is a leading provider of memorialization products, including memorials, caskets and cremation and incineration equipment, primarily to cemetery and funeral home customers that help families move from grief to remembrance.

The Company has over 5,400 employees in 19 countries on four continents that are committed to delivering the highest quality products and services.

Forward Looking Statements

Any forward-looking statements contained in this release are included pursuant to the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the expectations, hopes, beliefs, intentions or strategies of the Company regarding the future, including statements regarding the anticipated timing and benefits of the proposed joint venture transaction, and may be identified by the use of words such as “expects,” “believes,” “intends,” “projects,” “anticipates,” “estimates,” “plans,” “seeks,” “forecasts,” “predicts,” “objective,” “targets,” “potential,” “outlook,” “may,” “will,” “could” or the negative of these terms, other comparable terminology and variations thereof. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause the Company’s actual results in future periods to be materially different from management’s expectations, and no assurance can be given that such expectations will prove correct.

Factors that could cause the Company’s results to differ materially from the results discussed in such forward-looking statements principally include our ability to achieve the anticipated benefits of the joint venture transaction that recently closed, changes in domestic or international economic conditions, changes in foreign currency exchange rates, changes in interest rates, changes in the cost of materials used in the manufacture of the Company’s products, including changes in costs due to adjustments to tariffs, any impairment of goodwill or intangible assets, environmental liability and limitations on the Company’s operations due to environmental laws and regulations, disruptions to certain services, such as telecommunications, network server maintenance, cloud computing or transaction processing services, provided to the Company by third-parties, changes in mortality and cremation rates, changes in product demand or pricing as a result of consolidation in the industries in which the Company operates, or other factors such as supply chain disruptions, labor shortages or labor cost increases, changes in product demand or pricing as a result of domestic or international competitive pressures, ability to achieve cost-reduction objectives, unknown risks in connection with the Company’s acquisitions, divestitures, and business combinations, cybersecurity concerns and costs arising with management of cybersecurity threats, effectiveness of the Company’s internal controls, compliance with domestic and foreign laws and regulations, technological factors beyond the Company’s control, impact of pandemics or similar outbreaks, or other disruptions to our industries, customers, or supply chains, the impact of global conflicts, such as the current war between Russia and Ukraine, the Company’s plans and expectations with respect to its exploration, and contemplated execution, of various strategies with respect to its portfolio of businesses, the Company’s plans and expectations with respect to its Board, and other factors described in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K and other periodic filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.