Expansion of tube production: BENTELER Steel/Tube makes major investment in Paderborn

Paderborn, March 23, 2026. BENTELER is strengthening its Paderborn locations with additional investments. At the center is a major project for the BENTELER Steel/Tube division: approximately €17 million is being invested in expanding tube manufacturing at the Schloß Neuhaus plant. With this move, the company is reinforcing its position as one of Europe’s leading manufacturers of seamless and welded steel tubes and responding to rising demand – particularly from the automotive industry.

“With this investment, we are strategically expanding our capacities for seamless and cold-drawn tubes – especially for automotive applications such as airbag tubes and rotor shafts. The expansion will increase production capacity at the site by around 15%, allowing us to respond even more effectively to growing demand,” says Thomas Michels, Chief Operating Officer (COO) of BENTELER Steel/Tube. 

New production line for drawn tubes creates 30 new jobs

The investment includes a completely new production line for drawn tubes. This includes drawing preparation, a drawbench, expanded heat treatment capacity, as well as a combined straightening, testing, and sawing system. The line will also be complemented by systems for quality control, preservation, and packaging. The first system – the new drawbench – will go into operation at the end of May. In addition, capacities for sawing short tube sections will be expanded. 

Daniel Thewes, Plant Manager of the Schloß Neuhaus and Paderborn plants at BENTELER Steel/Tube, explains: "By expanding our production capacity, we are creating 30 new jobs at the site, once again demonstrating our commitment to the Paderborn region. Today, approximately 1,100 employees at the Schloß Neuhaus site already produce around 160,000 metric tons of tubes per year; roughly 250,000 tubes in a wide variety of dimensions leave our facilities every day and are delivered to customers worldwide."

Paderborn remains central: further investments in 2026

"Continuous investment is part of our long-term site strategy," says Tobias Braun, Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of the BENTELER Group. “Since 2022, we have invested more than €30 million annually in our Paderborn locations. In 2026, due to the major investment in our Steel/Tube division, this figure will exceed €50 million. This underscores that the Paderborn location is, and will remain, of central importance to BENTELER.”

BENTELER is also investing in its Automotive divisions: more than €15 million will flow into the BENTELER Automotive Components and BENTELER Automotive Modules divisions in 2026 – including approximately €8 million for various customer projects. In addition, the BENTELER Group will invest €6.5 million in central digitalization and IT projects at the Paderborn locations.